


Let Me Try

by OnceIDreamtAboutIt



Category: One Direction (Band)
Genre: Angst, Bodyguard Liam Payne, Declarations Of Love, Director Niall, Doctor Louis, Don't worry, Enemies to Friends to Lovers, Enemies to Lovers, Famous Harry, Fluff, How Do I Tag, Jealous Louis, M/M, Medical Innacuracies, Medical Procedures, Non-Famous Louis Tomlinson, Popstar Harry Styles, Slow Burn, Surgeon Louis Tomlinson, abusive use of italics, but louis's also very hot, but they're gonna have kinky sex, drooling over doctor louis, harry thinks so too, i guess, louis in scrubs, louis's just really dramatic, louis's very insecure, right now it's very PG-13, they're not really enemies
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-04-16
Updated: 2020-05-26
Packaged: 2021-03-02 04:01:00
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 4
Words: 22,438
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/23688838
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/OnceIDreamtAboutIt/pseuds/OnceIDreamtAboutIt
Summary: Harry proposes to make a donation at the hospital Louis works at. His team asks for a bit of publicity in exchange. Louis hates that. And so he hates Harry. But what happens when he turns out to be way more involved and caring for the children of the hospital?Louis falls in love. That's what.My summary sounds corny af but it's more complex tho. Don't worry xoxo
Relationships: Harry Styles/Louis Tomlinson, Zayn Malik/Liam Payne
Comments: 11
Kudos: 61





	1. Fuck off (and maybe fuck me)

Sexy doctors are a myth.

Of course, Louis always knew that, but people need to know. He is in the middle of a twelve hours shift, and he feels like he won't be able to put his foot in front of the other everytime he takes a step. He easily finds an on-call room, though, what with all the years he's spent here, and crashes on the bed nearest to the door. He has a fleeting thought for his patient that's going to wake up sometime in the next two hours, and he hopes it won't be too soon. He's asleep in no time.

He wakes up to the beeping of his pager. **Patient woke up, hurry – Jesse**. He wipes the drool on his cheek – Sexy doctors are a _lie_ -, picks up his lab coat and shoes, that he apparently kicked off in his sleep. How long, by the way ? He checks his watch : forty seven minutes. It's not enough, but a satisfying amount of rest. He made his peace with sleeping while in the hospital a while ago, used to the dark circles that look like bruises underneath his eyes.

Sexy doctors are a scam.

He finishes pulling all of his clothes on while he speed walks towards the room his patient was put in, waiting for him to wake-up. He spots Jesse, the nurse who paged him first, and walks towards her to collect the boy's file. She congratulates him on his work, and he only gives her a tight liped smile. He steps into the room, and suddenly, three pairs of eyes find him.

Louis adresses his patient first, who's looking at him from the white pillow his head's resting on :

« Hi Micah. How do you feel ? »

« Alive. Like someone dug around in my belly a little. Pretty cool » twelve year olds are a delight, L thinks. They never overestimate docs, and they're always blatantly aware of what's happening to them. But then again, any kid's a delight to him.

So he turns a little towards the boy's parents to deliver the news :

« Surgery went well, as nurse Jesse must've told you. We removed all contaminated parts that were around Micah's kidney, and he should be getting better very soon. We'll let you go home around noon tomorrow, make sure not to disturb the stiches, i really applied myself on those, alright? » he finishes with a smile to the boy.

Micah's mother clamps both her hands over her mouth and gasps a little, and his father, holding her tight, asks Louis : « Is it over then ? Is he done dealing with it ? »

Louis keeps a reassuring smile on his face and says, confidently « Well, we can't know for sure, Micah is going to have to come 'round for yearly scans and all that, but I like to think that I do my job well, so, yes. Micah's cancer free. » He announces. The euphoria in a room only contaiiing four people is astonnishing. Micah yells some non-understandable nonsense, her mother screams out and hugs him tight, and Louis tries to make a beeline for the door, as he's not too comfortable staying there, in the middle of that family's love effusions. Before he can make a strategic retreat, Micah's father grabs his wrist, and, looking him in the eyes, tells him his whole family is very grateful for all his effort. L says his usual « you're welcome, sir, it's just my job » and tucks himself away and out in the corridor. Walking towards the nurse station, though, he passes Zayn.

Zayn is the head of the cardiothoracic surgery department of the hospital, and Zayn only ever comes in with perfect hair and beautiful skin and Zayn never looks tired.

Alright, maybe sexy doctors are real. Sometimes.

And when he notices Louis's here, a smile grows on his -very attractive- face as he walks towards him. Ah, yes. On top of being one of the most beautiful people that god sculpted, he is also Louis's best friend. (When you spend 80 % of your time in the hospital, you're really only ever close friends with the people at said hospital).

« You just out of surgery, uh ? » He asks with a side hug, and a peck to his forehead. They've always been tactile and close enough to know they could touch each-other without it meaning anything. Louis also doubts somebody as pretty as Zayn would ever want him. Not that he himself would _want Zayn,_ specifically, just – ugh. He's having trouble with his self-esteem.

« How do you know ? » he asks, frowning a bit because _does he have to be a fucking psychic on top of being annoyingly perfect and pretty ?_

« You look half dead, bro. » Alright, and maybe this one hurts a little, because Louis _knows_ , he knows, okay, that he does not look his best right now. Or, well, rarely ever. Or maybe that's his best, which would be underwhelming, but. He's too tired to care, and he's also sufficiently satisfied with the success of his surgery to let it go. For now, at least. So he just shrugs, sighs, and leans his head on his friend's shoulder.

« Neuroplasma kid ? » Zayn asks again.

Louis nods as best as he can with his head sideways like it is at the moment. He takes a few seconds too much to understand why Zayn's hand is just in front of his face, and he high-fives it with all the energy he can muster.

« Good job » he hears, and with another peck to the top of his head, Zayn's gone away to tend to his patients.

Louis then resumes his walk to the nurse's station, and, once there, plops his head down on top of the counter.

« You know, this is a hospital. So all that's clean and all, but still. Don't rub your face everywhere, love. » Jesse warns playfully. She's Louis's favorite nurse for sure. He likes Jesse. She's well into her 40s and she has smile wrinkles around her eyes, she's known him ever since he was an intern, and she's always been very fucking kind to him. He raises his head up to look at her, and sees her sliding a cup of coffee towards him. Okay. She might be Louis's favorite _person_ right now. Anyone who gives him coffee deserves a kiss.

« I love you so much » he blurts out, already taking a sip from the coffee and exhaling heavily afterwards.

« I know you do, love. Patient in room 4206 needs you though. And then you have your rounds to do. Up you get ! » she smiles at him. How she's always so cheery, Louis wouldn't know. He grunts and pushes himself off of the counter, takes one more sip of his coffee, and gets back into his game.

He pages his interns while walking towards room 4206, walking confidently, putting his doctor face on.

...

Four hours later, he clocks out of his shift, after half a day spent at the hospital. He didn't lose any of his patients today, and considering how many of them he cares for, it was no small feat.

As he walks out of St James, though, in his « civilian » clothes once again, he spots Z in the lobby, waiting for him.

« Finally ! The princess comes down from her tower ! »

Louis snorts, punching him half-heartedly in the shoulder. « What do you want, loser ? » he asks, smiling nontheless.

« Chief said she wants to see you. Did you do anything ? Fall in love with one of your patients' daddy ? » he asks with his snarky tone, a smirk on his face.

« Fuck off » Louis breathes. He wants to keep joking with his friend, but he is in fact concerned as to why the hospital chief asked to see him. He starts asking himself if he did, in fact, make a mistake, but no one died on his watch for his last few shifts. And he hasn't slept with anyone from the hospital in _years._ What's going on ?

Zayn catches on his sudden panic, and gives him a side hug, stroking his arm gently through his sweater. « You'll be okay, love. Don't worry. You're the best here. Well, at paediatric surgery anyways. » he adds with a wink. After all, they're nothing if not competitive.

…

« A donation ? » he asks, confused and a little bit winded from taking the stairs up to chief Allaner's office, because he never has time to exercise anymore.

Sexy doctors are a hate crime.

He takes another look at the impressive number on the paper in his hand. « From who ? »

« Harry Styles. » she says with a big toothy smile.

« Who's that ? » now he's winded, and twice as confused.

Allaner snorts « You're kidding, right ? »

After a little awkward moment of staring at each other while she realized that he didn't know who that was, no joke, she gave him a quick pitch : twenty-four years old, pop singer, but also kind of a rockstar, and interested in giving money to their funding for the children, apparently.

« They only insist on a bit of publicity on our part, letting him be seen with the children, things like that. So, as head of the paediatric surgery, I'd like for you to attend the organisation meetings. And I'd like for you to stay _polite_ , and not blow this for us. You know that I know you're an incredibly talented surgeon, and that you do your work better than anyone at this hospital. But we both know that you can be a sassy little shit.

So get it all out now, alright ? And then you can be a kind and polite host to Styles and his team. Yeah? »

« Chief, with all due respect, what the fuck ? I'm not letting anyone with a camera get near my kids. Especially not if it's to satisfy some guy's saviour complex. » he said, ignoring the jabs about his character. He hates the publicity stunts that involve the kids he's treating. They're more than their diseases, and they're not dumb enough to not understand they're being used for someone's image. They can _feel_ the dishonesty. They're smarter than anyone thinks. Louis should know, he's been the one telling them _it's okay, we're going to do our best and it's possible you'll make it_ to children who saw right through his bullshit for years.

« Listen, he's a really nice guy. » Louis raises an eyebrow, because, _really ?_ What the hell does she know ? She rolls her eyes in reponse « From what I've _heard,_ Jesus, Louis. He hasn't had any scandals or anything. It's not like he's trying to redeem himself or anything, he's promoting a new album. »

Louis splutters, in an absolute riot : « To _promote an album?_ That's supposed to make it better ? You are NOT using my children to sell something ! They're sick ! They need to be cared for, not paraded around the internet to raise some dude's image ! I won't let it- »

« You won't let it ? You won't _let it ?_ » she interrupts, livid. « Do I need to remind you that this is my hospital ? We need the money, he says he'll give it to us. You can't keep pretending that public funding is anywhere near enough. And the kids will love seeing him. »

« But- »

« No ! No buts ! You work for me Tomlinson, you should make sure to remember that. So you'll cooperate, you'll be nice, and you'll go seat in the meetings. That's all. » she terminates icily.

Louis makes sure to slam the door on his way out.

…

He's at home, in bed, watching _Friends_ on Netflix when he finally remembers the name of the guy. So, Louis does what anyone would do : he googles him. He goes through his wikipedia page and his twitter, before deciding to look for pictures. And, alright. Sure. He'd look nice on camera, with dying children in the background. Then again, he'd look good about anywhere. And that's what makes Louis really _angry._ Of course an absolute asshole using his children for capitalism and his own money looks like an angel. Of fucking _course._

So, he decides to skim his music in order to find something to make him feel better. Big mistake. It's raw and beautiful and he doesn't find anything cringe worthy or embarassing at all.

He goes to bed being mad at the world, and especially at _Harry bloody Styles._

…

Because no other paediatric surgeon had been availble the past few days, Louis's on the 30th hour of his time at the hospital. It also happen that he's late at his very fancy (and very important) meeting with all the Harry Styles team. He's taken a shower and changed his clothes well in advance, but an emergency appendicectomy he had put in one of his residents' hands had turned sour, and he'd had to scrub in at the last minute.

Sexy doctors are a scam.

So there he is, running solely on coffee, jittery as hell, with bags under his eyes the size of Texas and in scrubs again, twenty minutes late to a primordial meeting for his hospital.

He runs into the room, not even attempting to look cool and collected. He catches Allaner's eyes and rolls his own. It's not like he _tried_ to be late.

« Hello, sorry I'm late there was a- » and then he sees _him._ Harry Styles. In a hospital meeting. What the hell ?

And admist all the other burning questions running around his tired mind, the most reccurent one is _how the hell is this boy so pretty ?_ Huh ? There's no sign of tiredness on his face, skin fresh like a baby's, and the most infuriating, is that he probably has an army of people to make him look like that, soft skin and bouncy hair, and yet Louis can't help but feel disminished. How was someone this gorgeous and in his hospital ? Zayn was enough trouble, who let _him_ in ?

And as if it's not enough feeling gross and ugly in his scrubs and his flat hair and his no-sleep state, a woman, what's-her-name, immediatly starts scloding him.

« Mr. Tomlinson, we have been waiting for way too long for you to get here. Mr.Styles has a lot to do, and if you do not present yourself on time, we won't be able to be here to help you. Mr. Tomlinson ? Are you even listening ? »

«Uh… I was in the OR, a kid crashed 4o minutes ago, and I had to step in. 'm sorry. But I'm here now, ain't I ? So maybe we can start this whole thing. »he says, falling into a plush chair that he had never seen before in that conference room. Stars and their comfort, he thinks, always need to have the best. He can't actually find it in himself to hate the chair, though, as it is the first plush and comfortable he had rested on since – since when exactly ? Since a few years, judging by the feeling in his legs.

He closes his eyes for a _second_ , (maybe a little more), and jerks awake when his head starts to roll back on his shoulders. He hears a snort and almost gives himself whiplash by turning his head hard towards the source of the sound. And that's Harry Styles. Laughing at him with his perfect skin and perfect eyes. Right, being as tired as he was, Louis hadn't checked with himself how he felt, being in the same room as him. Well, at least he doesn't have to directly talk to him. In fact, he doesn't have to talk at all, seeing as fart-face is already explaining in details how Harry has to be seen with children, but not those who were bed-ridden, as they generally didn't do well for the camera, and the estimated income for the charity, and all kinds of things that makes Louis despise all the people in that stupid conference room _hard._

As she's explaining how people always found it endearing that Harry picked up children and they would need a list of those he could play with, Louis feels… tired. Very tired. And angry, but too tired to actualy get mad. So he just does what he had learned to do years before in a household of 8 people : he filters it out. He leans his elbows on the table, takes his head in his hands, and closes his eyes.

There. _Have fun explaining your shit to me now._ He keeps ranting in his head about people using sick children for publicity, and taking advantage of them as they were too young and innocent to understand they were being used. However, his conversation with himself – _sue him, he's been awake since the beginning of times –_ was interrupted as a Starbucks cup finds its way right under his nose. He frowns, picking his head up to glance around the table, and then makes eye contact with Harry Styles himself. The man gives him a tight lipped smile, and jerks his chin towards the cup, mouthing « _coffee »._ Huh. He takes a moment to consider accepting a gift from his arch nemesis, ponders for a moment about wether it is poisonned, and then remembers he has not, in fact, met Harrry _dammit_ Styles ever before in his life, and doubts the other man already plans to kill him. Then, he also remembers he had seen him take a sip of it, which only serves in making him blush.

He decides he could use the coffee, and after having pointedly removed the lid – which owed him a chuckle from the other side of the table – he sips at it contentedly. A little sugary, but definitely better than the bitter stuff from the break room. However, he's not content for very long, as he chokes on it when the door of the room bursts open, sending him in a coughing fit.

Right. Sexy doctors and all that.

Turns out the person trying to tear the door down is Jennerson, one of Zayn's residents, looking red in the face, eyes wide and breathing laboured.

« Doctor Tomlinson, we paged you ten minutes ago ! » she says. Well, yells, really, but he was going to let it slide seeing as she seems to be in an advanced state of panic.

Louis, being a more experienced doctor, does not panic, and, staying seated in his plush, comfortable, new love of a chair, cool as a cucumber, stares her down before saying : « I turned it off, I was in a meeting. See ? » he says with a twirl of his hand around the room. « What happened?» he asks when the stares of the other doctors in the room become insistent.

« A patient of ours crashed. Dr.Malik is doing an emergency valve replacement. »

Louis arches an eyebrow. Residents tend to take a bit of time making it to the point, he thinks. « And ? » he asks.

« She's pregnant. And in preterm labour.» Jennerson finishes.

Alright. This Louis can get behind now. That's his field of action. He stands up, gets a note pad, and slips into the right mindset without so much as ten seconds having passed. He starts a ping pong game with the resident, with the occasionnal participation of one ot the pathologists present in the room.

« How far along ? »

« Twenty-nine weeks. »

« Alright. That's a 90 percent chance of survival. How likely is it that the mother makes it ? »

« Dr.Malik says about 60 percent, sir. »

« Good enough. Page one of my residents – Koulee should be good – give them the following instructions : give her terbutaline, as much as she can handle, _monitor the fucking baby_ , not like last time, and do an emergency C-section. He needs to get that lad out before Malik starts working on the heart. »

« Sir, Dr.Malik specifically requested you. He says he doesn't want another resident in his OR, sir. And he said he'll start his surgery in ten minutes if you're not there. »

« Jennerson, I don't have time for one of his tantrums, alright ? I haven't slept in 20 hours, I'm not operating. Isn't there another surgeon that's on call ? Ask them. »

« With all due respect, Tomlinson, a C-section is a fairly easy surgery. You pride yourself all the time on being able to do such with your eyes closed. What's the point of being this cocky if it's all talk ? »

« Are you shitting me ? Martin, you _prescribe medication_ , you give your patients _stitches_ at best. That, any of us can do with our eyes closed. Do you really think I'm going to risk an unborn baby's life because of my pride ? I can't operate. » he turns back to Jennerson : « Page. My. Resident. »

And then, all hell breaks loose.

« What are you insinuating ? You surgeons always think you're better, cutting people open and leaving half of them cold on your table. »

« You're endangering this child's life by refusing to operate, sir. »

« Who exactly do you think you are ? »

« But he's right, look at him ! He can barely stand ! »

« Somebody fucking page Sandra ! »

« Dr. Lee's on her honeymoon, sir, we can't. »

Louis, being lost in all the arguing, turns to Allaner. She's a pain in the ass, but she's the best doctor he knows. She just shrugs, and opens her mouth for the first time « It's your call. But if Malik starts in ten minutes, the baby's lost for sure. Don't you always say everyone deserves a chance ? »

« Alright ! Jesus. » he yells, putting a stop on the chaos of the room. « Get my residents in the OR, stat. And Jennerson ? Go give that woman some fucking terbulatine. Move ! » he screams.

He then grabs his lab coat, chugs his coffee, and throws it in the trash. He turns back to the room one last time : « Martin, if that baby dies in my hands, if I have to call a time of death for someone who wasn't _born_ , I swear that I'll give you a black eye. »

Then he turns to fart-face, that old bitch who had stared him down ever since he came into the room, and, unable to resist his rather sassy nature, mimickes a bow, and, with a honey-filled tone, tells her : « Welcome to St James, your highness. Funny how we come late to those things because we have actual jobs. »

And he runs out of the room. Sure, he could've had a cooler exit, but there is, after all, a woman waiting in the OR for someone to save her child so that she can be saved herself.

…

Two hours later, the baby's out, he's stitching up that woman's belly while Zayn's started his own procedure. He gets out forty minutes later, and goes fill his paperwork. He manages to make it up to the third floor, because he's pathetic and didn't have the courage to stay and risk seeing this woman die after all his hard work. He gets to the conference room they were all in, and when he sees nobody's there anymore, he feels like crying. He might've blown a fantastic chance for his departement to get some real funding, and he feels small and alone because the adrenaline's not there anymore, and he hasn't slept in 23 hours, and he hasn't seen his mom in years, so he curls up in his chair, and falls asleep right there, with this weight in his chest that won't relent.

He's shaken awake by a hand on his shoulder, gentle enough to not be unpleasant, but enough to wake him up, which is downright offensive, he thinks. He cracks an eye open to see no other than Harry Styles there, looking at him with his eyebrows furrowed. « What ? » he croaks. His voice isn't completely there with him, it seems, and his mouth tastes like a squirrel died in it days ago.

Sexy doctors make him want to tear his hair out.

« I saw the other doctor walk in the hall. Zayn ? He says the woman survived. And the baby, too. » and of course, pretty, perfect H has a voice as deep as a fucking abyss that L would gladly drown in. Even more reason to hate him. He's relieved that his patient lived, of course, happy, even, but he's also tired and lonely and no one should fuck with him right now.

« And what ? He sent you in here to tell me ? » he snaps. He feels miserable and he would like to sleep and maybe cry, not look into green eyes who suddenly look confused, and hurt. Fucking hell.

« Um… No ? I just thought you'd… care. And I wanted to tell you that I thought what you did was really impressive.» and he speaks so slowly too, and Louis is fucked, because that's a precious human being there, who probably means more good than bad, but clearly does not know how to go about it.

« Excuse me ? Of course I _care,_ but I'll also care when I wake up in a few hours. When do _you_ care ? When there's a camera around to make sure people know that you do ? I know we could use the money, it's a generous donation, don't get me wrong here, but all your fucking fortune couldn't hide the fact that you're using children, Styles, _my children_ , to make yourself some good publicity. Understood ? » and poor man seems to be stunned into silence, yet Louuis can't bring himself to care.

« I didn't want to… I mean, I did, but I'm not the one who- »

« Listen, love. You're very pretty, and that's fine. You're also a decent singer, and that's cool too. But you're not as good a liar. So go and perfect your little sob story with your team, go rehearse what you'll say to my kids, and once you're good enough that they won't see you're using them from a mile away, then maybe I'll want to hear from you. Now, if you don't mind, I'm trying to sleep, and to not further disappoint my mother by being rude. Okay ? So please go talk to someone who's not going to make you back out of you donation. » and with that, he turns back towards the arm rest of the chair, curling up once more as small as he can to fit, and doesn't aknowledge the footsteps that go all the way to the door, and out.

...

He wakes up with a migraine, an ache against the back of his eyes and his temples. He gets down to the paediatric departement, and after making sure there is another surgeon there, he finally, after thirty-six hours, check out.

He rides the bus home, being in no state to drive, and as he sees the sunlight of a late day in august, he feels like a vampire. He kept his scrubs on, being too tired to change back into his civilian clothes, and he's happy he did, because a young teenage girl seems to pick up on where he's from and how tired he looks, and offers him a seat.

He gets home, and crashes on his couch for a couple more hours. When he wakes up, he still feels miserable, so he does the only thing he knows will make him feel better.

Lottie picks up on the third ring : « Why hello, look who's alive ! I've been texting you, big bro, how come you never answer ? » she accuses, although her tone stays light.

« I had to pull a thrity-six hours long shift, Lots. You'd think that was only for interns but no, it's also for head-surgeons at unorganized hospitals. I don't even feel human anymore. »

He hears his sister make a sympathetic noise. She says he needs to take a shower, so he does that, while she's on speaker. He does feel better out of his scrubs and in sweatpants, after washing the sterile smell of the OR off of his body and out of his hair. Then she says he needs to eat, so she coaches him through scrambled eggs and smoked salmon. Then he tucks himself into bed, promises her to clean his appartment the next day.

They keep talking while he's burried under the covers, and when he starts nodding off, he warns her he'll fall asleep, so she tells him « Alright then Louis. Do you feel better ? » « Yeah. Thank you, love. »

« You're welcome. I'm always here for you, you know that, right ? You should go to sleep now. I'm proud of you. We all are. You save so many people, it's worth not seeing you as much. I'll come for a few days sometime this month. Deal ? » but she doesn't wait for an answer. « I love you. You're the best doctor there is out there. All those people don't know how lucky they are to have you take care of them. I love you. Very much. Sleep well. »

He falls asleep to the lilt of his sister's voice.


	2. Chapter 2

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> TW : Louis looses a patient (a very young one) in this. Be safe for your mental health, you guys :)  
> Anyways, Louis and Harry gradually get closer, and we see a lot more of the Tommos.  
> Let me know if you find any mistakes/typpos!

He spends his day off (he's on call, so he's not really off, but if everything goes well at the hospital, then he can pretend) cleaning his appartement as well as he can, and batch-cooking meals he'll take with him to St James – the cafeteria food is plain _evil._

He doesn't get called in until he's napping in his own bed, he changed the sheets and it smells good, and he feels so good, and he's been calling his sisters and everything is well, but the beeping from hell of his pager wakes him up from his slumber. He puts on mismatched socks and gets out of the house in his joggers and the soft jumper he was going to sleep in : it's blue, it's comfortable, and it's at least twelve years old. He's stretched it in all possible ways and it doesn't really have a shape anymore, but his mom got it for him, so he'll be damned if he ever stops wearing it.

He takes a cab to get the hospital, seeing as his car stayed in the parking lot there, and asks the driver to speed up multiple times during the ride.

It takes him fifteen minutes to get there, and he scrubs in in record time to assist on a C-section (yes, another) where the baby is born with gastroschisis – some of his intestines poke out of his belly. Everything goes well, and he gets out of the OR a few hours later. He gets some sleep in an on-call room, asking the resident who assisted him to wake him up when there's a sign of the mom waking up in the ICU.

Once the paperwork's in and his patient is reassured on her state and the one of her newborn, he pulls his clothes back on, which really are pajamas, but oh, well.

Sexy doctors are a shame.

He decides against going home since his next shift starts in four small hours, at midnight, so he walks to the rest room, where he keeps a spare pair of pants and a button down for these instances. He goes there relying on pure muscle memory, all the while reading the updates on one of his patient's file.

Of course, since he's so lucky, he bumps into someone on the way there. He feels hands on his arms to steady him, and he looks up into the face of his troubles. Literally. There stands HS himself, looking perfect as always, which shouldn't be allowed in his damn hospital, because people are _dying_ in here, and he's there looking all pretty and dolled up, and L will not let this happen here. He stands upright and raises his eyebrows, because it's been a few moments and H's hands are still on him. Funnily, H, otherwise cool as a cucumber, blushes.

« What are _you_ doing here ? » he asks accusingly. He doesn't mean to be so aggressive, he's just supprised and that's his usual defense mechanism.

Harry finally releases his arms, and straightens himself : « I uh… I came back today for a meeting, and I was just leaving. »

Louis doesn't really understand how a literal _popstar_ can stutter as much as Harry Styles, and if he wasn't so cross with him, he'd find it endearing, because- wait. A meeting ? What the actual fuck.

He looks up with wide eyes « There was a meeting ? When ? » And then he remembers how adament Allaner was that he went to the meetings, _all the meetings_ , and, in her own words, that he cooperate with everyone. Did he unintentionally skip a conference ? And he panics so much that he starts to justify himself to Harry Styles, of al people.

« I didn't mean to skip ! I swear I was _just_ in the OR, and my next shift isn't until midnight, so I would've known if there was one and I would've been here, I swear ! » he starts asking himself if he'll get fired. He guesses that he's a good enough surgeon to not get dumped over a stupid _meeting_ he didn't even know was happening in the first place.

Soon enough, the man in front of him starts to shuffle his feet and rub the back of his neck, saying « No, uh… It wasn't a meeting with everyone, just me with the chief, I guess. Uh. I didn't mean to scare you like that. 'm sorry. »

Oh.

« Oh. » Louis's just calming down, and he realizes at that moment how close they're standing together, so he takes a step back.

But then something crosses his mind, and he's thrown back into full panic mode : « Why did you have a special meeting then ? Are you coming back on your decision ? Is it because of what I said ? » and he knows, this time, that it'll get him fired.

« Uh… kind of ? I mean, um, yes. But that's because I'm planning something else. »

Well, shit.

They might be hiring at Royal. The people he knows from there are bitchy, and he probably won't be as highly ranked as in St James, but he'll have a job. He might have to move appartments too. Fuck.

« Shit. » and then he remembers that Tommos don't get fired. They fight tooth and nail and they do their absolute best, but they _don't_ get fired. He won't embarass his family name like that. Hell, Mulan went to war, he can be nice to a popstar for ten minutes. Probably.

« Listen, uh, Harry. Can I talk you really quick ? There's the break room right there. See ? » he gestures towards the general direction of said room. Popstar looks hesitant, though. Well, he could blame it on the fact that he jumped for his throat everytime they spoke together, but Louis'd rather think it's because he's famous and spoiled and don't want to lose his time with a lame doctor in pajamas. He knows better than to accuse him of it, so instead he adds « There's security cameras, you know ? I won't strangle you. Promise. »and thinks, _I'll hang myself first, don't worry, princess._ And hey ! How did this guy steal his nickname on top of the rest ?

Alright. He needs to get his shit together. Sleep deprivation is really driving him crazy. Unless he was always like that ?

His internal rant is cut short by Harry.

« Okay. I, uh… let's go. »

And then they're walking side by side to the break room, and Louis thinks, _I hope someone's seeing this. It'll make a nice defense witness when Allaner calls me in._

They settle in an awkward silence. Louis gets himself coffee, and doesn't ask Harry if he wants one, because he definitely won't make even his worst ennemy drink something that foul.

« So. » he starts.

« So. » Harry's watching him intensly, and he doesn't like it. Or maybe he does, but he doesn't like _him_ , that's for sure.

« So, I wanted to say I'm sorry for last time, yeah ? You meant good, and my mama raised me to be better than this. So. » he catches Harry frowning by the corner of his eye. He lays his accent on thick, because if that man is going to think anything less of him for it, then it'll give even more motive for hating him, and Louis' not above that.

« I, uh. 's okay. I mean, I probably shouldn't have woken you up, but uh. You were so impressive, and- I mean, the fact that you're a surgeon, for start, and Allaner says you're the best, but. I, uh. Just wanted to tell you you did good. Wasn't my place. So 'm sorry too. »

His eyes are cast downwards, and in a sick, twisted way, Louis likes how his incredible confidence wavers. _Welcome_ _to the common people, then._ Then what he just said catches up to him. And maybe it strokes his ego. And maybe his self-esteem raises its head because it's hoping to get stroked too. So he sees an opportunity, and he dives for it.

« So, then. Um. » very eloquent. « So then, do you forgive me ? » Harry nods. « And, I mean. I don't know that there's a correct way to ask, but. Will you maybe reconsider ? You donation, I mean. Because the kids really need it, well, _we need it,_ the doctors and the nurses, to help the kids. And you shouldn't base yourself on what I say or do, 'cause I'm not that significant mesen. » he swallows hard. He hopes Harry doesn't think he's after his money. Which, he _is,_ really, but.

« Oh, I uh… I mean, I already signed another contract. » Louis visibly deflates, completly discouraged. Harry continues a bit louder than needed « But, I mean, the profit'll go to the paediatrics still! I, uh. I signed something with Allaner and a mate of mine, to make a documentary ? And, uh, we would promote it, with my team, and, like, the money it makes will go towards the hospital. So that way, I gave a job to my friend, and the kids won't be _used_ , because they can tell their own stories, and uh, so can you. And it'll make more money than what I could give out of my pocket. So, um. Yeah. » and Louis could be thinking how adorable that grown man is when he stutters, or how considerate he is, but all he can think, for some reason, is _protect protect protect._ Which, same thing, basically.

 _«_ Well, uh. I'm sorry I misjudged you then. Badly so, apparently. We haven't lost the money, then ? »

« Not really. I'll invest it in the series, but, then, you know, it'll come back. With babies ! » and Harry Styles should _not_ smile while Louis' in the room. He has dimples ? Okay, then. God really likes to play favourites. Asshole.

Thing is, Louis can't help but smile himself. That joke's stupid, but it's funny. Kind of.

« That's cool. Nice of you, really. So, we can start off clean, yeah ? »

« Sure ! I like your jumper. » and he sounds like he's teasing.

« Alright, we're not _that_ close, don't comment on my mama's jumper . » he jokes. Harry seems to get it.

Harry smiles again, but this time, it's _at him,_ and Loui's inexplicably happy for his whole shift.

…

He started at midngiht, and finishes at noon. Twelve hours shifts suck, but at least he gets to go home and nap for a while. His next shift is at four in the afternoon the next day.

He gets called in by Allaner in the afternoon, though, for a meeting with another Styles team – how many does he have, exactly ?

He gets there with some tea instead of coffee, on time, and in comfortable clothes. He feels human, and decent, and when he makes eye contact with Harry, who'se mouth is gaping a little, he doesn't feel like a beetle anymore.

The people on that team are way nicer, and more respectful. They call him Dr., for one, instead of Mr.

They explain that the director's plan (Harry's friend, apparently) is to choose five to seven kids from Louis' and Martin's departements (paediatric surgery and paediatric oncology) and follow their treatements, have them « testify » of their time at the hospital, let them do the talk about their illnesses, and so until they're out of the hospital. They say that both doctors can submit whatever list they want, with the knowledge and consent of the parents for their child to participate, but that it'd be better to choose children who have a biggest chance of making it, considering that'd be better for the hospital's image and whatnot.

Everybody seems on board with the idea, and when Allaner asks what Harry's role in it is, no one's really sure. He's funding it, he's providing means and a director, and apparently he can star in it in discussions with the patients and doctors, as long as it doesn't disturb the flow of the story they'll tell.

As far as it all goes, Louis' not mad at all. The idea's brilliant, and it could help them a lot with their means and finances, while giving people an actual idea of what children live through while in the hospital.

Then, Harry's assistant - Clara, not fart-face – announces that they have a deal to have it broadcasted on Netflix, but that they'd need to have exclusivity with them. Which means, the docu-series would be available on Netflix only. But judging how popular the platform is, they all vote towards it.

Some other people start talking about the estimated revenue for the whole project, and upon hearing the number, half of the people attending (the hospital staff, mostly) start cheering. Louis catches Harry's eye as he's pumping his fist in the air, and, when he expects to be laughed at, Harry smirks, and then wolf-whistles to join the celebration.

After a little while, when the tantrum dies down, Clara distributes them papers to sign to show their consent about their being on camera for a few different situations.

« I have to do an interview ? » Louis asks, feeling a bit disoriented. « I thought it was about my kids, not me ? »

« Well, as their doctor and surgeon, the public – and us – are going to be very interested as to what you think, how you treat them, and how you feel about everything, really. We want to incorporate little bits of the medical staff's testimonies throughout the whole story. Additionally, we would like to film you working from time to time. » When Clara sees all the doctors' frowns, she quickly adds : « Of course, our filming teams will know to be very professional and not get in your way at all. If they ever do, however, you'll be free to dismiss them whenever. »

As if on cue, half of the room nods. As a doctor, Louis thinks it won't be too bad to endure. As a person, he thinks it's one of the best ideas ever, and he can't wait to watch it.

Clara continues pitching them the plan, « We're going to get together a whole team for you, to work around your schedules and be there when you need them. I mean like a hair & make-up team, one of our publicist to coach you a tiny bit around what to say and what to avoid, but I guarantee it's all to benefit the establishement's image, and you'll all be free to speak your mind. »

This, Louis doesn't like as much, and as he looks around to the faces of his collegues, he knows he's not the only one. Hair and make-up ? This is a hospital. They're doctors who work around the clock. If they don't look dead on their feet, they're not doing it right. And as of controlling what they have to say, he's not sure if it'll change much, considering how Allaner's always reigning him in, but he still doesn't love the idea.

Harry seems to catch up to the mood change, and, ever the charismatic fucker, sits up to talk : « You'll be free to refuse whatever. If something makes you uncomfortable, you can ask for the cameraman to get lost, and for the footage to be deleted. If you don't want to get all pretty, or if you don't have the time, you don't have to. Anything you don't want to do, you're not going to have to. We understand you're hard working people, and we just want you to look as good as possible. That's it. » He has a reassuring smile playing on his lips, and Louis thinks fleetingly how smooth he just was compared to the stammering mess he usually sees. He doesn't have time to brace himself when Harry turns back to him, however, and winks.

He hates the little butterflies fluttering around his tummy. (He really doesn't).

…

Once the meeting is over, everyone stands up, and start talking with collegues. Louis finds Jessee easily, and they start discussing how terrible they'd look if they were ever filmed during a night shift. They laugh about it relatively easily, considering they both know no one can look good at four AM after being puked on for the third time.

« Do you remember that Connie boy, Louis ? » she asks, smiling. « Can't believe how smart he was, that one, always a joy to be around. »

Louis aggrees enthusiastically. He knows he shouldn't have favorites, but sometimes, he just can't help it.

A hand snakes its way on his shoulder, and he turns around once he sees Jesse's gaze focused on something – someone – behind him. It's Harry. Again ?

He looks cute up close. He has very healthy-looking skin. _What the fuck am I thinking ?_

« Hi. » he still has a deep, gravelly voice. Louis thinks it's not attractive at all. It has no effect on him. None. « Was wondering if you'd like to grab a coffee with me and my mate Liam there ? » he asks while turning his head towards the lad Louis noticed was standing behind his chair the whole time.

« You're welcome to join, of course. » he adds with a smile directed at Jessee. Louis thinks he can recognize that smile as his trademark charmer feature, now. Weird. He doesn't know the guy that well. Jessee, who Louis realizes is blusing furiously, just shakes her head no and walks out.

Louis turns towards Harry, a joke on his lips about how shy Jessee is, but he sees him frown, the corners of his mouth tugging downwards.

« She doesn't like me. » he mumbles, as if it was meant to be something he'd say to himself.

Louis snorts « You're kidding, right ? I'm pretty sure everyone in this room loves you and sees you as their saviour. Plus, she's clearly intimidated. I'm sure she didn't mean to leave like this. » and Harry blushes scarlet, almost as red as Jesse had been. Then Louis replays everything he just said in his head, and he feels his own cheeks go red.

…

Louis says hello to that Liam lad, who seems nice enough, even though he doesn't talk a lot. They decide to get coffee in the hospital cafeteria (it's not great, but better than what they make in the break room), because Louis' on call and doesn't feel like running accross town if something were to happen.

They're walking in silence towards the cafeteria and Louis thinks that if things are going to be that awkward the whole time, he might throw himself out the nearest window. And as if God heard him, at that exact moment, Zayn walks passed them, ever the model in his perfect hair and scrubs and coat.

Louis only needs to call his name once. They smile at each other, and when Zayn gives him a big bear hug, and congratulates him for his latest surgery – a splenectomy, that, frankly, went splendidly – with a peck and a loud smack on the cheek. When they turn to Harry and Liam, they're both frowning, so Louis tries to look as apologetic as his cheeky nature allows, and smiles tightly at Harry, who returns it anyway.

Zayn proclaims that he assigned all his residents on a case and that he's currently on a break, so Harry, who's always a polite boy, Louis learned, invites him to join. They find themselves a table in the corner of the cafeteria, because Louis noticed all the stares directed at Harry, and while he's _not jealous_ , it just seems annoying. Liam keeps looking out the window once they sit down, and, after Zayn takes everyone's orders, he walks away towards the counter. Louis notices Liam gazing after him, though, and can't help his smile.

Harry clears his throat next to him, and tries to start a conversation.

« I didn't know you and Dr.Malik were a thing. »he says, his voice all grumbly and sexy but Louis' too focused on the absurdity of his statement to pay attention.

« We're… not ? » it doesn't sound like a statement, and he doesn't like the way he loses his confidence around that man. Not one bit.

« It would be okay if you were, you know. You don't have to, um. Like, hide anything. » and Harry's blushing for the second time that day, _pretty._

« But we're not ! » he says too loudly. Liam snaps his head towards him, as well as some people in the large room, so he gets himself together, and goes on. « If you're refering to the gay thing, I know it's not a problem. It's never been one here. But we're just… friends. More than that, Zayn's my best friend. That's all. »

And when Harry bites his lip to avoid smiling, the butterflies in his stomach die down for a second.

« Why ? Were you, like… interested ? » and Harry looks up at him with wide eyes, and barks out a laugh.

« Me ? Not really. But Lima Bean over here might be, no ? » he accuses with a smirk.

Liam goes red and shoots him a dark look. « Fuck off, will you ? Or I'll let you get shot. »

« I thought so ! » Louis says. If there's going to be some banter, screw it, he'll participate. « He's single, you know ? If you wanted to make a move, sometime soon. » he concludes with a wink.

« See, Lima ? Loulou said you need to make a move ! Liam and Zayn, sitting in a tree- »

« Shut _up_ , oh my god. This is why I never go anywhere with you. »

« Liam, you go _everywhere_ with me. » Harry deadpans.

« Well, not willingly, trust me. If I didn't get payed as much, I would've let your ass get mobbed ages ago. »

« You don't mean it, Liam, do you ? How would teenage girls survive if his pretty face wasn't all over TV ? » Louis challenges, raising an eyebrow at Harry. « Oh Harryyyyyy you're so perfect… Oh Harryyyyy your face is like a million stars and galaxies... »

Liam takes it from there « Oh Harryyyyy I want to have your babieeeess, Harryyyyyy you're the Ketchup to my fries ! »

A voice interrupts them « Oh Harry… Here's your coffee ? » They all turn towards a confused looking Zayn, and Liam and Louis burst out laughing while Harry crosses his arms and pouts.

« 's not funny. I'm only friends with Zayn now. You two suck. »

Zayn smiles, putting down their cups in front of everyone, « I win ! Yessss, perfect. So now that we're best friends, am I invited to your crazy villa in California ? » he asks, wiggling his eyebrows.

« Yes. And you're being featured on the album, too. » Harry adds, and this time Louis' pouting. « I want to go to California, too. » he mumbles.

Zayn laughs. « As if you would take a break long enough to do so, Mr.Workaholic. »

« It's _doctor_ workaholic to you, Malik. Speaking of, have you rewied the file i sent for you the other day ? »

« Yes. Congenital heart defect ? I think it can be solved if you make more room in the right atrium. »

« Thought so too. 'd you like to assist in it ? We're programming it for tomorrow around six PM. If you're game, I might let you take one of your residents in my OR. »

« Sure ! We'll be there. »

They turn to Liam and Harry, eerily silent, both staring at them.

« Huh. Sorry. No more work talk. »he smiles sheepishly and hides his face by taking a sip of his drink. What nerds they could be.

Sexy doctors my ass.

« No, uh… It's fine. Yeah. » Harry stutters.

A beat passes with no one talking, and in a desperate attempt to save the conversation, Louis asks : « So ! Liam ! What is it that you do, then ? » the question seems to snap everyone back into the moment.

« I'm Harry's bodyguard. »

« Oh, so that's where all the 'getting shot' thing comes from then ? »

Liam chuckles « Yeah. I wouldn't though. Let him get shot, I mean. »

« Well, that's reassuring. » says Zayn sarcastically, which, hey! That's his thing. « Has anyone ever taken a shot at you ? » he asks, concerned.

Liam answers « We've arrested a people with guns outside of venues twice. But, no. We do our job well. » he says fiercely.

Louis can see that Zayn might've just wet his scrubs a little, judging by the look on his face. He clears his throat lightly, and when Zayn turns towards, he gives him a knowing smile and wink. Zayn rolls his eyes before questionning « Isn't it scary ? Are you never concerned about people hurting you then ? »

« Not really. I'm pretty sure that Liam knows how to prevent it, and that my fans don't want me to suffer. I mean, there's always a risk, sure, but I'm not worried. »

They keep talking for a while. At one point, Zayn gets paged to one of his patients' room, and after easily 45 minutes that they spend easily laughing with each other. Harry's jokes are insufferable, yet absolutely endearing. Liam is a solid and calming presence, in spite of how fast he talks and goes from a subject to another. He seems to ground Harry enough, which is reassuring to Louis, who does _not_ want a popstar walking around his hospital unattended.

They all part ways as Harry and Liam anounce they're going to the airport to get their friend – the one who'll direct the documentary.

…

Once he's home and in the shower, it hits him that he's going to be on a _Netflix show, goddamit._ He instantly calls for an emergency family facetime, to which all his sisters aggree, to the exception of the twins, who will facetime them with his stepdad, as they're too young to have their own phones.

Twenty minutes later, he's on his couch, holding his phone up to his face, laughing with his sisters at how Ernest is shoving his little nose in the camera.

« Alright, alright. Settle down, fam. »he says, smiling already at the announcement he's about to make. « What I gathered you all here today to say, is that a celebrity is making a donation to the hospital. Guess who ? »

« David Beckham ! »

« Eva Longoria ? »

« Oh, is it that one footie dude that you like ? »

Louis bursts out laughing. Then he smirks, and says « Well, I didn't know who it was, but something tells me you will. »

« Spit it out ! » Phoebe yells, looking mildly angry.

« Harry Styles. » he says with a smug look, and, as predicted, the Tommos go crazy. The girls start screaming, and the twins, who are a little young to understand what's going on and who Harry Styles is, start cheering to join on the fun. Even Louis' stepdad goes « Oh, I love that lad ! He's great. »

« Did you _meet him ?_ » Lottie screeches.

« Better than. Had coffee with him today. Think Zayn's in love with his bodyguard. » and that sends them into another fit of screaming, cameras shaking, and voices trembling.

Once it's died down a little bit, he goes « And, by the way, you're brother's going to be on Netflix. But go on, keep, screaming about Styles, it's okay. » he says mockingly.

Everyone goes silent. Then it's Fizzy, who very softly, as if he's delirious and she doesn't want to tear his dream appart, who talks : « But, Louis… You work at the hospital. When will you be on Netflix ? How ? »

He grins again, happy of the bewildered state he's put them in. « Harry's funding a documentary about a few children in St James. The money'll go towards paediatrics here, and they told us today the doctors and nurses will be in it as well. »

And when his sisters all start incoherently talking all at once, his smile doesn't waver. He's incredibly happy to be a part of the documentary, and more so to share that with his family.

He procedes to explain to them exactly all that's been said in the meetings so far, and he's a little bit annoyed at how he seems to go _Harry this, Harry that,_ but no one picks up on it, so he thinks it's not that bad.

An hour later, every one starts to hang up, as the twins have to go take their bath, and Daisy and Phoebe get tired, and Fizzy has to work some more on uni. It ends up being only him and Lottie, who immediatly starts teasing him.

« Harry, huh ? You're already on a first-name basis, then? » she asks with a smile.

« Shut up, Lotts. You don't know what you're talking about. » he's still smiling though, and she knows better than to be offended.

« Not now I don't. But I'm coming over next tuesday for a week. I booked the tickets and all, you can't say anything. Will dear _Harry_ be around still ? »

« You could've said something earlier, Lotts ! I'm going to be working, you'll get bored. »

« Not what I asked. » she sing-songs

He sighs. « I don't know. We have a few planning meetings next week, though, so I guess ? Don't be disappointed if you don't see him though. »

« I would never. I'm coming to see my brother. Popstar meeting is just a bonus. But, since you said he might be there, I encourage you to ask him to be sure, because I might get Fizzy tickets as well. »

« What happened to seeing your brother, then ? I'm not a good enough reason for her to come ? »

« Louis, you know she's busy with classes, right ? »

« Well from what I hear, she's not very busy when it comes to Harry Styles ?! »

« Louis. Are you jealous or something ? You're family. We'll always come to see you in a heartbeat if you needed us. But it so happens that you're friends with Harry Styles, whom we _need_ to meet, so, as family, you owe it to us to let us come and see him ! » she finishes with a beaming smile.

« 'm not _friends_ with him. » he pouts. « He's taking over my hospital, and now he's stealing my sisters. » But really, he knows his sisters will be over the moon, and he makes it a mental note to ask if Harry'll be around the following week.

He orders take out and eats with Netflix playing and a smile on his face. Life's treating him good right now.

And as if the universe could hear him think, that's when his pager goes off.

…

As he goes to scrub in, he notices a sauce stain on his cheeks from the chinese food he was having. And he already greeted a bunch of his coworkers. Yikes.

Sexy doctors should be burned.

It's a complicated surgery, he assigned two of his residents to help him, and yet he runs into some trouble. The baby was born with a congenital cystic adenomatoid malformation, some abnormal tissue in his lungs, but as they're pulling it out, she crashes. They bring her back once, page doctor Lee to come back, as she was the one to originally operate, but she says she still doesn't feel well.

The patient crashes a second time, and he's trying really hard to pinpoint the problem, but there's pleural effusion, some liquid around the lungs obstructing his vision, and they end up loosing her.

He pulls back, and, watching such a tiny body on a cold table, away from her mother, tells his resident to call the time of death. He's out of the OR before he's finished speaking, scrubing out and washing his hands while trying not to cry. He takes some deep breaths in the hallway while he waits for his residents to join, and they all go break the news to the family.

You shouldn't ever make what you say to the patient's family about you. Ever. But as he explains in a robotic voice what went wrong with the surgery, he can't help but think : what if it had been Ernie ? Or Doris ?

He can't avoid his voice trembling as he watches the mother cry so hard she shakes. He turns his back and walks out only once he's dismissed, and send his residents update the files. He knows they'll have each other to rely on, and he needs some time of his own.

He's already started crying quietly when he gets to a quiet hallway when he realizes his legs got him to the break room. He pushes the door open, and his eyes zero on Lee.

She's on the couch, with a cup in her hand, chatting away with Harry, who he doesn't even look at.

« Where were you ? » he asks in a low voice, almost a whisper.

She snaps her head back up, a smile on her lips, which immediatly fades away as she sees the state that he's in.

« Louis ? What happened ? » she asks, as if she doesn't fucking _know._ The thing is, they've been collegues for a long time, and she was very supportive when he became head of the department, and yet, he could not care less what they've been through in that moment. He feels another tear slip, and he's momentarily upset and ashamed to still cry over patients, but he thinks it's always better than to hide away from a complicated surgery.

« Where were you ? » he asks again, louder. « We paged you. I even sent an intern out of the OR to look for you. » she stays silent, which only serves to make him see red. « Are you telling me I had to hold a dead baby in my hands because, what ? You were holed up here ? You were scared of a complicated intervention ? Or, what ? You wanted to bat your eyes at the first remotely famous person there is here ? » he seethes. He doesn't care that Harry there and can hear _everything._ He doesn't care about a lot right now, all things considered. A mother just lost her newborn baby. Everyone else in this hospital can go fuck themselves.

« I was in that woman's room, staring her in the eyes telling her the child she had felt growing for years is _dead !_ I was in her room watching her cry when it was your name written on that fucking board downstairs ! »

She starts to stand up, and he has to control himself really hard to not push her back down. He doesn't need physical violence charges on top of everything else.

« Listen, Louis, I'm very sorry. I messed up, alright ? » she tries to put her hand on his shoulder and he pushes it off right away.

« Don't touch me. Don't you fucking touch me. » The tears are falling freely now. « If it were up to me, you wouldn't eve, touch a child in this hospital ever again. »

He feels satisfied at the look of hurt on her face, and finally allows himself to take a breath, look down at his feet and wipe his cheeks.

« Louis, I swear I had a good reason. Listen, I can tell you about it, okay ? If you want. »

« No thank you. » he spits. « I think I'll give you some more time to polish your lie, I think. » and he hopes she can see the hatred in his eyes, because he's sure that if she hadn't walked out of the OR, if that child hadn't been open and spread out that long, she'd have survived.

She tries some more to talk to him, but he's resolute to make her understand he hates her.

She ends up walking out after a few minutes of talking to a wall (they came up short) and he sinks down to the floor, wrapping his arms around his knees, hating that all he smells on himself is sterile and death and despair.

He sobs and hiccups, and he thinks he must look pretty pathetic, and when he suddenly feels a hand on his shoulder, he startles : « Don't touch me ! » he croaks out between two panting breaths. He looks over his other soulder to find Harry kneeling next to him, eyebrows tight together. And that's how it hits him that he was there for the whole thing, completely silent, making himself disappear.

He feels deeply ashamed for a moment, and then decides he doesn't care because he has the right to be upset.

« Do you want me to go, or… I mean, I could go get someone ? Zayn ? »

He shakes his head no, because he knows that Zayn is in surgery right now, and St James doesn't need all its surgeons running out of their Ors.

The hand goes back on his shoulder. « Maybe that nurse from last time ? Jessica ? Vanessa ? » and he'd think it was pretty cute that Harry remembered that he'd been speaking to Jessee at their last meeting, but he can't get his breathing back in control enough to tell him her name, so he shakes his head no again.

He feels Harry stand up and his hand disappearing, and he panics a little bit at the idea that he's alone to deal with it, but he's back kneeling by him, this time face to face, to hand him a glass full of water.

He props his head on his knees, and when Harry notices he isn't about to unwrap his arms from himself, he brings the cup to Louis' lips, and, very carefully, gets him to drink half of it. Afterwards, Louis sighs, and sags forward.

Harry wraps an arm around his shoulders, an d sits more comfortably next to him, and Louis puts his head on his shoulder automatically.

« I can go if you want. » Harry mumbles, kind of against his hair.

« ' s okay. » Louis whispers in response.

« Do you want to talk about what happened ? »

« Not really. »

They both talk really quietly, as if t o not disturb the silence around them. The lights of the room turn off, because they're triggered by movement, and the both of them have been very still.

« It's always harder with the very young ones. » Louis says, eventhough he just said no to talking.

Harry hums. « Is it because you have children yourself ? » Harry aks gently.

Louis shakes his head no. The lights flicker back on, and Harry gets startled, but not Louis. It feels like his body isn't responding to its surroundings.

« No. I have a lot of siblings though. It's just a universal thing that the youngest hurt the most. »

Harry hums again. He can feel him slowly leaning his cheek on the top of his head.

« Do you want to tell me about them ? To take your mind off of things. » he whispers, and Louis can feel his breath on his hair, and it makes a shiver run down his spine.

So he then sits for a while to tell Harry about his five sisters and his little brother – which owes him a gasp – and tells him the story of how Fizzy broke her arm when they were little, and his mom, who was a nurse, knew exactly what to do, and how that made him decide, right then and there, to be a doctor. He tells a few funny stories as well, like how the twins always seem to understand each other telepathically, and how Fizzy and him started a food fight once, and got away of cleaning it thanks to their incredible charming abilities. He even smiles a little, and feels lighter.

Harry tells him of his own sister, Gemma, and all the shenanigans they've been up to last christmas. Once he manages to make Louis laugh, just a little giggle, he tightens his arm around him and bravely says « I know you did your best. And I also know that your best is incredibely good. I'm sorry you couldn't save that baby. But you saved hundreds of children, Allaner told me so, and I don't want you to be hard on yourself. Sometimes it doesn't work out. It's okay. »

Louis cuddles closer to his side and sighs.

« I wish there was something _more_ I could do. This woman lost her baby and I'm here crying about it. »

Harry starts to protest, probably to say he did plenty, but Louis interrupts : « actually, you know what I wish ? I wish Lee hadn't walked out in the middle of a fucking surgery. »

Harry tenses by his side. « I really think you should, um… I mean, don't get mad, okay ? She really has a good reason. I think you should, uh, talk to her. Let her explain. »

And really, he's lucky Louis' too tired to pick up a fight. So he just shrugs, and hopes that Harry'll let it go.

And he does, apparently : « Where do your sisters live, by the way ? »

« Uh… Lottie works wherever the people who pay her are – she's a make up artist – and she's in Donny right now, lucky chap. And then Fizzy's in uni in Birmingham, and all the others are back in Donny as well. » and then he remembers. « Lottie's coming over next week. She says she wants to meet you. And she asked me to ask you if you were going to be here, because then she'll invite Fizzy to come as well. So. »

Harry smiles, and Louis can feel it on his head, and he thinks that they're really having quite an intimate moment.

« I'll be there next week for the meetings. Then on friday I'm going to LA for ten days to do promo for the album, then I'm back in the UK, and we might start shooting then, so I'll be around and I'll do my UK promo then as well. So, yeah. I'll be there. »

Louis thinks that there's something to pick up from the fact that Harry just described his schedule so far in the future, but he's really focused on the fact that he'll have a handful of Lottie and Fizz in his appartment.

Better get ready, then.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> *clears throat*  
> so.  
> this one was a bit longer, too.  
> Louis' taking a while to pick up on Harry's flirting after too, don't worry, he is an oblivious little shit, but it gets better :)


	3. Chapter 3

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> We're getting a bit more of the documentary project, Niall arrives, and Louis' a hot doctor.  
> (I haven't included a Harry POV yet, probably xon't, but think of how sexyyy he must think Louis is)

The next day is their first meeting with the director. Louis, who's still trying to get on Allaner's good side, makes sure he's ten minutes early. He has a surgery scheduled for an hour later, so he shows up in scrubs – to his greatest displeasure – a cup of coffee in his left hand. He easily spots a blonde guy waiting next to the door, with a big folder in his hands, and sunglasses on his head. He's not sure why, but he's certain that he's the director in question. He arrives behind him, positions himself on the man's left, and tentatively says : « Hi ! Are you Harry's friend ? The director ? » and plasters a smile on his face.

His smile, however, wavers down to a grimace when all he receives from the man is a haughty sniff.

_What the fuck ?_

He takes a step back, frowns, and square his shoulders.

« Excuse me ? », and the movement seems to capture the man's gaze, who turns to him, wide-eyed and slightly startled. He looks to Louis' face, then takes in his attire – scrubs, lab coat, sneakers and stethoscope – and gives him a wide smile. Louis, albeit very confused by the situation, immediatly feels like a jerk. He keeps frowning at the man, unsure what to say.

That's when a voice behind them both makes Louis jump : « See you've met my mate Niall ! » He turns to see Harry with a wide smile on his face, teeth, dimples and all. The man – Niall – turns to follow Louis' movement, and smiles wider than Harry, before giving him a big bear hug.

Louis stands to side, even more confused than ever, and it only starts when the boys break appart, because Niall is _signing_ to Harry. Shit. And then, Harry signs back, easy as ever. Niall points to him in another sentence, and Harry finally turns to him.

« Well, Louis, Niall says hello. »

Louis blinks. « Uh, hi ? » he says hesitantly.

Niall smiles and taps Harry on the shoulder to sign something else. Harry nods, and says « He wants me to tell you that if you speak slowly and articulate well, he can read your lips. »

« Oh, uh… Okay, yeah. That works. » and he gives Niall an awkward thumbs up, which quickly turns into flipping Harry the bird when he hears him snicker. He raises his hands, palms up, to try to appease him, to which Louis only gives an eye roll.

Niall signs something to Harry that makes him choke on his spit, splutter, and blush. It's Louis' turn to laugh, and as he clasps a hand on his mouth, Harry glares at him, looking adorable with red cheeks.

« What did he say ? » Louis asks between giggles.

« Nothing. » and when Niall turns to Louis, he adds « Don't you dare ! » before turning him back to face him and sign fiercely to him.

Louis raises his eyebrows and cocks a hip, ready to get it out of them, when yet another person joins them.

« Hi, boys. » Allaner greets. « Louis ? Do my eyes deceive me, or are you actually on time ? » and he is seconds away from answering something too sassy for his _boss,_ when Allaner signs to Niall.

« You know ASL? » he asks, bewildered.

« Of course, Tomlinson. You should get to it too, whenever you have some free time next. »

His jaw almost hits the floor. _Free time?_ He can barely sleep and keep his flat clean!

She bursts out laughing. « I'm _kidding,_ Tommo. » It makes him cringe, hearing her calling him what his friends usually do. « I know you barely have time to live, dummy. Just try to mooch off someone who knows. »

And of _course_ Harry turns to him, looking all puppy-like, as if he had just been told Christmas was early this year.

…

Ten minutes later, everyone is sat around the same oval table as last time, and they're well into the meeting. Niall apparently has been reading everyone's lips without problems, since Louis can't see anyone signing to him at any point. When he wants to add something, however, he taps Harry's shoulder, who's sitting to his right, and signs something that'll be repeated out loud for everyone.

They conclude the meeting by announcing that they should start shooting a week and a half from now, as that's the time necessary for the camera equipment to arrive, and for the paperwork to go through and let the children chosen participate.

Louis has three kids from paediatric surgery registered to participate: Dylan, an adorable 3-year-old little boy, who was unlucky enough to be born with a malfunctioning liver: the bile doesn't evacuate from it the right way. Usually, a fairly complicated surgery to repair the bile ducts is enough to cure the condition, but baby Dylan's malformation is bad enough that he needs a transplant. He's already been waiting for two weeks, and Louis thinks that, considering his really young age, he shouldn't have too many issues getting him a brand new liver.

Then, there's Riley, another boy, eight years old, and an absolute little terror. Louis has a soft spot for him because he distinctly remembers being like him in more ways than one, a long time ago. Pyloric stenosis – whatever passes through his stomach has trouble getting to the small intestine: he'll have to make a nicer opening between those. The complicated part, however, is that Riley has always had a fragile health, and it's not the first time Louis' seen him in his department. They had to operate on his appendix when he was six, and had then discovered that Riley had a low count of lymphocytes, (T-cells specifically), which make it way easier for him to get sick, and, by extension, fairly dangerous for him to be in the hospital for an extended period of time.

And then there is sweet, soft Olivia. Another of his old patients. Louis had operated on her as a baby to put her stomach, intestines, and liver back inside her little tummy. And now, she was back with intra-abdominal abscesses, and even though Louis _knows_ it's a common complication that shows pretty regularly, he can't help but feel like he did a bad job – _not good enough if she has to come back here at five._ She's as old as the younger twins, and she's this red-haired little princess, and if that was how he cured his patients, Louis would give his life for hers.

He handed in the sheet with their names a few days ago, after talking with all parents and children, to make sure they were all okay with it.

He knows Dr.Martin has submitted four patients of his, who he hopes to never see, as the kids who transfer to surgery often don't make it out. He'd been resilient to add Olivia to the program, but he had felt obligated to give her the option, and she'd been awfully enthusiastic, and her parents thought the idea was brilliant, so.

He gets lost in his thoughts, repeating the motions inside his head of the surgery he's going to perform, when everyone starts to pack and get up. Startled, he gets up as well, and checks the time : twenty minutes until his surgery. It's enough time to get coffee before scrubing in. Yet before he can make all of his coffee dreams come true, he comes face to face to a grinning Niall and Harry.

« Right. What is it this time ? » he asks, unable to stop the smile forming on his own face. These boys are contagious, and he doesn't think that it's the best idea to have them in his hospital.

« Niall suggested that we go and meet the children you submitted. That way they can get used to seeing us before all the cameras and madness comes 'round ! » and it's… not a bad idea at all.

« Yeah ? You'd do that ? » he asks, a little impressed at how much time Harry's willing to spend in a hospital full of sick children.

« Of course ! It's the least I could do, really. » and it's really not. He's going to get these kids money that will make their lives in the hospital way better, as well as the quality of care they're given. But he doesn't say that, because he's a little scared of how in awe he is of that man.

« Alright. I mean, I have a surgery right now. Shouldn't take more than an hour, it's a kidney tumour, those come out pretty easily. You can wait here, or we can do that another time, but I'm on-call tomorrow, because my sisters get here, so you'll have to tell me whenever. » he's rambling a little, but he doesn't want to ask himself why he's nervous at the idea of spending time with Harry. Harry and children. Harry being nice to children. Harry maybe holding children ? God.

« No, we can wait. We have to call ahead for Niall's crew, anyway. Just, uh, come get us, maybe ? When you're, like, when you're done ? But, like, no rush, because, that's a little kid you're gonna save, so- » and he sees how nervous Harry seems as well, so his instincts kick in, and he's not uncomfortable anymore.

« He's fourteen. He's not a little kid, and everything should go well, knock on wood – Harry and Niall both knock on Harry's head, and he wonders how many years they've been friends – and you know what, just take my number, I'll text you as soon as I'm done scrubing out. Deal ? » he asks, blushing even though he's no longer stammering, because he just asked Harry _rockstar_ Styles for his number.

Harry _rockstar_ Styles, ever the energetic puppy, digs in his pocket and gets out his phone, that he unlocks clumsily for Louis to type his number in. Louis does the same for Niall's phone, and they both send him text messages so he'll have theirs, too.

Harry's message reads : **Hi:)**

And Niall's : **Harry thinks you're pretty**

He chokes on his own spit and blushes « What ? » he looks at Niall with a big smile and a red face.

Niall smirks in return and signs something to Harry, who turns to him, confused.

« He told me to tell you, that I told him so ? What did he say ? » he asks with a frown in between his eyebrows and an ~~adorable~~ childlish pout on his lips. Very kissable lips.

 _That's it, drool on your scrubs you doofus._ He'll never get to be a sexy doctor.

« I'm flattered, Styles, but I like to think of myself as handsome and rugged. » he says with a grin, and he watches as Harry catches on, and he is so red that Louis is seconds away from asking him to sit and calm down, but that tall goofball turns to Niall and screeches « Traitor ! » before Niall squeals and runs away, giggling, Harry hot on his heels.

« No running in the hospital ! » Louis attempts, but they're already way further down the hall. He shakes his head fondly, and thinks that he got himself involved with some more children.

…

He's out of surgery after fifty-seven minutes, and scrubs out a moment after, feeling pleased with himself. His stitches really do look better since that seminar he took, and he's happy to not leave too visible scars on his kids.

He shoots of a text to Harry : **Just out of the OR, meet me in the break-room in five.**

He washes his hand one last time, gets his cap off, leaves his surgical scrubs in the trash can and leave towards the break-room in his usual baby blue attire.

He arrives at the break-room first, and goes to his locker to change back into his sneakers, and as he's putting his lab coat back on, Niall and Harry barge through the door, having a visibly heated conversation, both signing furiously at the other.

They both stop at the same time and all three of them look at each other, Niall and Harry mid-movement, their hands still in the air, and Louis halfway into his white coat. They all stare for a few seconds before Harry lowers his hands.

« Hi. Did it go well ? » he asks, a little awkward.

« Yeah ! All fine, he still has one and two thirds kidneys, so. » he jokes, but Harry just frowns and Niall looks confused, probably because he wasn't talking slowly enough. So he articulates when he starts talking again : « I'm making myself coffee before we go see the kids. Do you guys want some ? I'm warning you, it's shit. » he chuckles.

Niall nods enthusiastically, and Harry declines politely – of course – so he makes two cups and stirs sugar in his own (something that he wouldn't usually do, but that thing is so bitter that something has to be done) and they all sit down on the two couches of the room.

« So, uh, what do they have ? The children, I mean. That we're going to see. I mean, can you even tell us ? » Harry asks.

« Oh, yeah ! No, I can tell ya, the paperwork's done so it's okay. Dylan, Riley and Olivia. Dylan's three, he's this cute little boy, has a defective liver. We're hoping to get him a new one soon. Riley's eight, an absolute monster, of course, and he needs a simple surgery on his stomach, but he also has this weird count of lymphocytes that we're trying to diagnose so he can get a treatment for that as well, and then there's Livy. She, uh… She had surgery, as a baby, and now, um. -he looks down to the grown – she had surgery that I performed, because some of her organs had grown outside her, and now she needs it again. »

There's silence for a while. Then Niall taps on his shoulder, and shows him his phone, where he typed in the notes app : _I'm sure you did good work. Allaner says you're very good._ And that doesn't fail to make him look up and smile, because he just met that lad and he's already one of the sweetest people he knows.

« Thank you. » he says with a genuine smile. He sips on his coffee, holds in a grimace, and goes : « So, basically, Dylan looks a little yellow despite being the cutest, Riley's pale and you'll wash your hands twice and put on scrubs before going in his room, and Olivia's my little princess so be nice to her. »

Niall nods to him and Harry says « of course! » like the true gentleman that he is.

They sit together for a little while, talking, and when Niall takes a sip of his coffee and spits it out immediately, they all have a good laugh. Harry has a taste and wrinkles his nose immediately : « _This_ is what you drink ? »

« Yup. »

« That's _disgusting!_ »

« Yup. »

« You _save lives_ and they make you drink _this ?!_ »

« Yes, Harold. Get over it. » but he smiles nonetheless, because, yeah, he saves lives. And it's pretty sweet, being reminded of that.

…

It's almost the end of Louis' shift when they walk into Dylan's room, so he takes the opportunity to mark down a few things on his file, takes a look at his heartbeat, sodium count in his blood, and such.

« Hello, Dylan. How are you today ? » he asks, and he only gets a shy smile in return. He turns to the little boy's mom. « Hi, Ms. Wright. How are you doing ? »

She answers a little shyly, twisting her hands, looking behind his shoulder at Harry and Niall who are just standing there, just… standing. Staring. Louis sighs heavily. So much for _not being weird._

“These are my two idiots.” – Harry goes _heyyyy_ behind him. He ignores it – “Don’t mind them. They’re going to be working on the documentary, so we’re letting you two get a good look at them, alright?” he says, smiling gently.

He’s had his doctor’s face on ever since stepping inside the room, and he only ever has three facial expressions : kind, focused, and _don’t fuck with me._

He beckons both Harry and Niall forward, and introduces them. “Dylan, this is Harry. And this is Niall. He’s the one that’s going to boss around the cameras. Do you wanna say hi?” he requests in his gentle tone.

Dylan perks up, and gives them a small wave. Niall and Harry both beam, and wave in return.

“Have I seen you somewhere?” asks Ms. Wright, a small frown on her face. She’s obviously trying to place him, and Harry turns to him, eyes wide, asking for help, but Louis just shrugs. _You’re on your own for that one, bud._

He turns around and starts jotting down numbers and evolutions in Dylan’s chart, and makes a mental note to get the nurses to give him a snack during the afternoon from now on : his sugar levels are fine, really, but they could be better. And Louis always aims for perfection.

“I’m uh… I sing. So maybe that’s where you… you know.” He hears behind him. Harry’s drawling a weird explanation, that is, admittedly, a little awkward. _Yes, hello, I’m a Rockstar._ Meh.

“Oh!” Louis hears the recognition in her voice, and turns around to see her put her hand on one of Harry’s shoulders, who looks uncomfortable, and giggle a little bit.

“I knew I’d seen you somewhere!”

And _what the fuck?_ Her son is laying right here. Sick. And Louis’ not jealous, at all, because, first, he could touch Harry like that if he wanted to. If he had the balls to. And second, he’s simply concerned about her parenting. That’s it.

He smiles to Dylan, gives him a wink when he catches the little boy’s eye, and turns around to his mother once again.

“Everything’s looking good so far. I think I should be able to get my hands on a new liver for our little buddy here pretty soon. But he’s healthy enough that we can wait a little more. – he turns to Dylan – When I’m done, mister, you’re gonna be able to have all the sweets you want!” and little Dylan squeals, and his mother shakes Louis’ hand and thanks him, and then they’re on their way to Riley’s room.

He makes the three of them wash their hands again (you can never be too careful), and before he opens the door to the room, he turns to his company.

“Riley will eat you up. Still, you have to be nice, okay?”

The both of them nod, and they go in on that.

“Good afternoon, Ms. and Ms. Ellis!” (there’s a reason he likes that family this much) “Hi Riley, how are you?”

“Hi doc! You ready to poke a whole in my intestines?” he throws back with a smirk, while Louis shakes both of his parent’s hands. They’ve known each other for a while, mainly though Riley’s consultations.

“I’m not _poking a whole,_ Riley. I’m just making a bigger one in there.”

“Yeah, alright, whatever you say. Just make sure I’m not a strainer, please.” Then he frowns. And then he smirks. “Who’s _that?_ ”

And that’s when his parents step in: “You remember when we signed the papers for the film you’ll be in? These are some of the movie people, honey.” One of his moms chime in.

“Actually”, Harry chimes in, “we’re shooting a documentary. And we’re very excited about it!” he proceeds to shake both their hands, and Niall imitates him. “This is Niall, he’s going to direct the series.”

“Hello” greets Riley’s mother – Jenna, Louis learned a week ago – with a warm smile. She holds it up even when Niall doesn’t say anything in return, and Louis feels a whole lot of appreciation for her.

“It’s very nice to meet you both” Darlene adds – Riley’s other mom, the one with bright red hair, Kelly – with as much of a sunshine smile.

Harry clears his throat, and turns to Niall who’s signing something: “Niall says he thinks that you all make a nice family.” He repeats with a smile. It’s not exactly his happy smile that make his eyes shrink, and his dimples pop out, but rather a polite one, and Louis feels strangely startled that he knows the difference, like he caught himself with his hand in the cookie jar.

Neither of Riley’s moms bat an eye at the fact that Niall is using sign language, and they actually _respond_ the same way.

Niall widens his eyes, gets really excited, and starts signing really fast to the both of them, who chuckle and answer, still.

“You know sign language, too?” asks Louis, confused as to why he seems to consistently be the only one who doesn’t know.

“We do”, answers Kelly. “Riley got really sick a couple years back, and the doctors told us he might go deaf, so we all learned.”

Louis can’t help but feel impressed at how she can talk and sign at the same time, and Niall whips his head towards Riley, and they both start talking with each other with wide grins on their face. Right when he thought he couldn’t like this family more.

“Was that the time Riley was hospitalized at Royal?” he asks, checking his patient’s file. Riley’s moms confirm, and Louis steps to a corner of a room to shoot off a text to the hospital’s secretary to get Riley’s file from Royal. He looks up a few seconds later to the sound of a high-pitched squeal, to see Niall tickling Riley while Harry’s gently holding his arms and laughing along.

And of bloody _course_ it’s like time stops and he moves in slow motion, because what really is the point of having long, curly, bouncy, flawless hair if it doesn’t always look like a perfume commercial? Instead of getting annoyed that a man that’s never been to _college_ is better than him, he just… stares. And it’s really not his fault that there’s a beautiful boy in this room, okay? He’s already doing his best not drooling, but his jaw snaps shut when Harry looks up and they make eye contact. He keeps looking into green eyes until a hand is waving in his face, and, evidently, it’s Niall, with a knowing smirk on his face.

“Alright!” Louis says, too loud and awkward, “I’m gonna get the details on that story at Royal, and I’ll try to get a diagnosis with the help of some of our other docs, okay? We’re also going to program your surgery sometime this month, because I want our head plastic surgeon to assist, and he’s got a tight schedule. I’ll give him a call today, and keep you updated on that.”

They say their goodbyes and get out of the room, and Louis’ already dreading the rest of his day: no more Harry and Niall happiness, and a talk with the world’s worst asshole.

He leads them towards a nurse station, and makes them wash their hands again.

“Harry, tie your hair, please. Before you wash your hands, too.” He asks softly, with an apologetic smile. He feels like he’s ruining the world’s eight wonder that is Harry’s glorious locks.

He also hands them one only-use overscrubs each, that are a soft yellow and that you put your arms through, and tie in your back, so it covers your front. When he turns around from his preparations, he sees Niall struggling to tie his own, so he helps him as Niall gives him a sweet smile as thanks, but then he chokes on his own spit because Harry has his hair in a _bun,_ and it still looks _gorgeous_ , and he feels like a loser when Niall’s gently patting him on the back because of it.

Later, as they walk towards Olivia’s room, over-prepared, because nothing’s happening to his princess today, he starts questioning what it is he’s been feeling when he steals glances at Harry.

It’s not the fame, because a) he doesn’t care about that, and b) he didn’t even know who Harry was before he googled him, a few weeks ago. Then, he thinks it might be the money, because he always wants what’s best for his kids, but they’re not doing _that_ bad, and he has money himself, and he does not need to seduce Harry or whatever to get his money, it’s already happening. So he concludes that it’s probably the Harry Charm that he sees get amped up every time they go to someone new, his patients, his patient’s parents, Jesse… It’s probably that. And the dimples. It’s okay, he’ll grow out of it. Probably.

Of course, because he’s a professional, he stops thinking about it as he greets the little girl.

“Hi, Livy! How do you feel?”

“Hi doctor Lou-Lou!” she answers excitedly with her high voice, and he hears Harry go _aww_ behind him.

She’s holding his arms out to him, so he goes give her a little cuddle, because she’s been in and out of here a few times already, enough that she knows him and he’s lucky enough to have her.

Her dad’s looking on with fond in his eyes, and Louis likes that man, because he’s always been patient and nice, even though Louis’ probably the one who messed up what’s most precious in his life, so he greets him warmly as well : “Hello, David. How are you today?” he asks with a handshake, and the man smiles warmly at him.

“We’re doing good. Helena’s finishing something for work right now, she’ll be along later today.”

And Louis’ surprised when Harry steps up, hand extended to introduce himself, “I’m Harry. It’s very nice to meet you, sir.” He says with a very serious look on his face, looking somewhat… determined? “And you too, Olivia” he adds with a smile, and while he expects her to shy away, she giggles delightedly and shrieks “You’re on TV!” to which Harry smiles softly and answers “Yeah, that’s right.”

There’s something so bizarre about seeing Harry interact so well with that kid, like two worlds colliding, yet he can’t help but feel endeared at how sweet he is to her.

“Are you gunna help doctor Lou-Lou to save me?” she asks with her head tilted to the side, probably because he introduced the two residents he assigned on her case the same way, and he thinks _what a smart girl,_ just as Harry goes : “Oh, no. No, not at all. Uh, Lou-Lou” – and Louis can tell already that he’s smirking, and that he won’t hear the end of this anytime soon – “is the one that’s saving you. He’s the hero, yeah?” – Louis’ blushing – “We” – he gestures between him and Niall, who steps up – “are the one making a whole documentary about you! Do you remember doctor Lou-Lou telling you about us?”

“Yeah! He says you’re gonna make life here much better!”

“Well, we’re going to try. Do you feel well?” and Louis would feel offended that he’s asking _his_ questions if he didn’t think that man was so damn _cute._

“I’m okay. Dada says doctor Lou-Lou is gunna make the ickies in my tummy go away.”

“That’s right he is!” Harry says, mirroring her smile, and that’s where Louis has to cut him short, because you shouldn’t ever make promises to your patients, even if they’re the most deserving people on the planet.

“Right. Do you feel any pain at all, sweetie? Or any nausea?” and he turns to her father as well, because children often forget if they had aches during the day, as there are much more interesting things going through their minds.

They get out a few minutes later, after Louis’ gotten every piece of information for his patient’s chart and Niall’s introduced himself via Harry. He doesn’t necessarily want to let it linger: Olivia’s in a precarious state after all.

They throw away their gloves and scrubs, and stand all looking at each other, while Louis has his charts clutched in his arms.

“So. That’s done. Thank you, for, you know, introducing yourselves to the kids. Plus, they always like having visits, so that’s even better.”

“It was a pleasure, Lou, really.” He pretends he doesn’t notice the nickname, but in reality, he’s already imagining _Harry + Lou_ in little hearts and _Lou Styles_ in his diary.

“Niall says he’s happy to have done it as well. He thinks they’re great kids.”

Louis smiles warmly at him, somewhat proud. “Thanks, Niall. They really are.”

There’s a pause, and Harry proposes “Coffee?” which makes Louis’ heart beat a little faster, because _ohmygod he wants to spend more time with me?_ But he gets off cloud nine quick enough.

“Oh. I have to finish my rounds, so…”

“Oh, that’s okay. I mean, you have a job here, so of course… I mean, not that I ever doubted you have a job here, or whatever, I’m not saying it’s easy-” Niall hits him on the back of the head.

“Uh. Niall wants to ask if we can come with, too? To visit the kids?”

_Ohmygod he really wants to spend time with me!_

“Of course, yeah. If you don’t mind my residents, that is. Speaking of which!” he fishes his pager out of his pocket, and dials them. He starts counting in his head. “Don’t mind them, by the way. They’re young, and they probably know you.”

The first of them arrives running, out of breath, her heels still hanging out of her shoes.

“Ahmed, twenty-five seconds, good job.” She smiles brightly and goes “Thank you sir”, still out of breath, trying to put her shoes on properly, before her eyes drift to behind him and she lets out “oh my god.”

She turns red immediately, straightens up, and runs her hand through her hair – which also belongs in a commercial, and Louis hopes to _god_ she’s not going to become a sexy doctor because he’d hate having to hate her – before smiling widely.

“Hi! You’re Harry Styles! Oh god.”

“Hi” Harry chuckles, and Louis catches Niall’s gaze, who rolls his eyes with a wide smile, that makes Louis snorts. Thankfully, his resident’s too absorbed with Harry right now to pay attention, but the singer does hear, and turns to him, an eyebrow raised. Louis simply shrugs, and lets his favourite intern have a good moment in her shift that’s probably horribly long.

Two of his other interns arrive together fast enough, but his fourth one has yet to show, and it ticks Louis.

When she shows up, she’s this blonde girl with childish cheeks, and it’s hard to ever be mad at her, but Louis can’t really play favourites – he really _doesn’t_ , even with Ahmad – so he eyes her coolly and talks with a tone cold as ice:

“Third time this week you’re last to show, Sullivan. You’ll be on fatigue for the charts.” She looks down to the floor, and he does feel bad, but he remembers being a resident too, and he knows he needs to be harsh to make them good enough doctors.

“Alright, listen up! Harry and Niall here are going to observe how we do our rounds before we start shooting sometime in the next two weeks. If you can’t help being distracted, I don’t want you on my team. You’re surgeons, not fangirls. You can have a selfie or ask how soft his hair is at the end of your shift, which I believe isn’t for another six hours, so don’t get too excited. Understood?”

They all nod their head quickly, looking at him like puppy look at their masters. It’s cute how they always seem to think he’s the best, even when he lost a patient not a week ago.

He turns around to lead his group towards their first visit, when he catches Harry and Niall, standing there, looking absolutely dumbfounded. He raises he eyebrows, then jerks his head forward to get them going. They scramble to start walking, and he chuckles. He likes how he rules this whole department, as well as the people in it.

…

The rounds go as usual, mostly. Louis calls for one of his residents, orders “present the case, please” before they go into the rooms, because he’d rather handle talking to the kids or in front of the kids himself. He lets them jot down the details and evolutions in the patients’ charts while he explains to them and their parents what’s going on and what to expect. He describes some surgeries he’s going to perform and asks his residents some questions about symptoms or procedures to test them, and they do rather well. The only thing different is Harry and Niall, who are following them like ducklings, gaping at him every time he asserts his position over his students.

He’s used to slipping in and out of what he calls his “bad bitch mode” (there’s also his “doctor mode”, when he talks to patients and needs to be professional), but obviously, they’re not used to seeing him sass his residents or order them around.

They have less than twenty patients to visit at the moment, so it all goes rather quickly, except for that one parent who thinks it is Louis’ fault he can’t get a working prosthetic for his daughter (they’re quite tricky on children) and goes off on him, screaming and getting in his face. His residents all coward behind him, which he doesn’t really mind, because he includes them in the group of _kids I take care of when I’m working_ so he extends an arm to keep them behind him while he gets yelled at. He gets spat on, too, because that man is really _that_ angry, but he just wipes his face very calmly, and says, cool as a cucumber : “I’ll get a biomechanics engineer to work on it, sir. I know someone working on their doctorate here. But you need to understand that it is _not_ acceptable for you to act this way, if you want to stay at your daughter’s side especially. Trust me when I say I’m doing my best, we all are, for your child’s sake. It hasn’t worked yet, but Summer’s just in her age’s average regarding prosthetics. I’m sure we’ll manage to get her one.”

He steps out of that room while the child’ mother apologies profusely to him, to which he shakes his head, _it’s alright, love, don’t worry yourself,_ and finally catches sight of Harry, looking absolutely livid with Niall clutching his wrist so tight it had to hurt.

He frowns, confused, as Harry barges towards him, and cradles his face in one of his hands. He tries his best not to gasp or blush too hard as Harry growls “How _dare_ he? Who does he think he is?” while scrubbing his cheek clean of spit with his sleeve. “You’re clearly amazing, how dare he, that asshole.” And really. The whole growl and grumble thing? Very sexy. Louis’ flooding his basement.

Once Harry’s done scrubbing the side of his face, though, he steps back, and, as if he’s finally catching up with his actions, flushes crimson red.

They finish up their visits, his residents acing his questions and Harry and Niall entertaining the kids who are all delighted to see them, so while his good mood lasts, he eyes his residents once they’re out of their last room. He sighs as if defeated.

“Alright. These two idiots are all yours until I come back from the nurse station.”

His students are staring at him with wide eyes as he smirks and turns around, and starts walking. Quickly enough, though, he hears them squealing and talking and begging for a selfie and an autograph. He pats himself on the back for cutting them some slack, and goes drop off his patients’ charts in the nurse station. He even takes enough time to get himself a cup of coffee from the pot there, because he knows the nurses of his department actually like him, since he’s not so cocky or up his own ass as, say, Martin.

He comes back, strolling as if on a walk, to see they’re still surrounded by his residents, albeit a bit calmed down, and he’s pleased to see they’ve included Niall in their conversation. He takes a sip of his coffee, cringes, and then goes back into _bad bitch mode._

“Alright, kids. Enough fun for today, don’t get used to it. Sullivan and Lucas, you’re both going to the labs and getting Marces on this case. She’s a feisty one, but tell her you’re there on my part and give her the patient’s file, fill her in on whatever necessary. Ahmad, I want you back on watch duty for a heart for Cecilia. If you manage to get anything, _anything at all_ , page me, give me a number to call, anything, okay? Even if I’m not in. Koulee, since I just saw you roll your eyes, you’ll divide the charts with Sullivan and take them up to date at the end of both your tasks. And you’re going to the ER, by the way, they need a helping hand. Just stitch a few kids up, take some of the workload off their hands.” The intern rolls their eyes once more, and Louis narrows his. “Roll your eyes _one more time_ , Koulee. One more time and you’ll be draining pus out of the nastiest wounds I can find you and cleaning puke for the rest of your residency. You get me?”

They mutter a _yes, sir_ and cast their eyes downwards.

“Good.” He looks up to the rest of his students. “What are you still doing here? Don’t you have a job to do?” he snarls, and they’re all running off to their appending tasks as he sighs and turns back to Harry and Niall.

“So!” he exclaims. “Coffee now?” he asks them with a smile.

“What the fuck” Harry mumbles. “You just went from Godzilla to sunshine, what the actual fuck?”

Louis chuckles.

“Don’t worry your curly head, love. I just have to make sure they know who the boss is.”

“Well I’m pretty sure they do know!” Harry exclaims, eyes wide still.

Louis tries to ignore his stares while they get down to the cafeteria.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hi!!!!  
> These have taken me a while, I'm sorry, but in order to make you forgive me, I'll be posting another 5k chapter in a few hours!  
> Kudos and comments are always appreciated!  
> Thank you for your time & for reading<3
> 
> P.S : In the next chapter : Nick Grimshaw, Louis' sisters, Dr.Lee again, and probably a whole lotta texting between larry.
> 
> Also, I'm killing off one of the kids. :/ don't get too attached, okay?


	4. Chapter 4

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> introducing nick, and the sisters are in town!! :)

Louis’ on his second cup of coffee while in Harry and Niall’s company, in the hospital cafeteria once again. That’s when he remembers something.

“Where’s Liam?” he asks.

“Day off.” Harry answers distractedly, busy focusing on the muffin he ordered with his latte.

“But don’t you need protection?” Louis asks, mildly worried.

“I’m not here for like, official business or anything, nobody knows I’m here, so I can go around without him. Besides,” he looks up to Niall “I have my buddy here to protect me.” To which Niall smiles bright as the sun, and Louis feels his heart swell.

They all speak of their lives in London and other stuff, and Louis’ all smiles and chuckles until his eyes catch something unwanted behind Harry’s right shoulder (if he was watching his hair, still perfect after being in a bun, that’s nobody’s business).

It’s an obnoxiously high quiff of hair that he sees first, followed by the face of doom itself: Grimshaw.

“Fucking hell” he mutters, and Harry asks “what?” and turns around to try and see what made Louis so grim, but Satan is already walking towards them.

“I heard about you being here, but I never thought I’d get to actually see you, Harry Styles!” the other doctor says excitedly. Louis thinks Harry’s name sounds off in his mouth. Not actually ugly, because nothing concerning Harry could ever be ugly (where did _that_ come from?), but it sounds foreign, as if it doesn’t belong in there.

But Harry, polite as always because his mother taught him well, stands up and extends a hand.

“Nice to meet you!”

“Dr.Grimshaw, call me Nick, it’s very nice to meet you too.”

Niall watches Louis curiously, who mimics puking motions, getting a laugh out of Niall.

Grimshaw turns to them, and, pointedly ignoring Louis, and not letting go of Harry’s hand since they shook their hellos too long ago already.

“Who’s your friend?”

“That’s Niall!” answers Harry too cheerily for Louis’ taste. “He says hello.”

Louis gets up abruptly, making they cups and plates clink on the table.

“Grimshaw.” He squares his shoulders and stands as tall as he can (fuck off).

“Tomlinson! Didn’t see you there.” He answers with a very obviously fake smile.

“Right. Spare the bullshit, please. I have a pyloromyotomy to operate on. Riley Ellis, eight years old. Has weird symptoms we weren’t able to diagnose yet, most likely an immune system failure. Anyways, he needs that surgery and I want you to assist.” He grumbles.

“My, my. The great Tomlinson wants my help? What’s gotten into you?” Grimshaw’s smug. Of course he is. Louis tries to think of Riley, and his moms, and how adorable they all are in order to push through.

“I’m messing with you. I’ll assist, if you want. May I just ask why?” Grimshaw backtracks, which confuses Louis, but he knows better than to complain about it.

“Don’t want scars too big on him. Isn’t that your whole job?” he snarls back, unable to keep the venom from his voice.

“Ah. You should practice your stitches, Tomlinson.” – as if he hadn’t _already,_ that douche – “I’m booked for a while, but I’ll get back to you to schedule it, like a week from now? That works for you?”

“Yeah, okay. Thanks.”

He sits back down, then eyes Grimshaw as icily as possible until he’s on his way to another part of the cafeteria.

Niall taps him on the shoulder and gives him a quizzical look. _What was that?_

Louis sighs heavily: “That’s Grimshaw. Head of plastic surgery, also reigns over Hell during his free time. The worst dickhead to ever set foot in this hospital. Unless you want a new pair of boobs; I suggest you save yourself the trouble and stay away from him.”

“He didn’t seem that bad?” Harry questions, frowning.

“Well, you just met him, so.” Louis says a little too harshly. He can’t help but dislike the way Nick just held onto his hand and smile at him.

There’s an awkward moment of silence when everyone just takes a sip of their cups and look around helplessely.

“My sisters are getting here tomorrow morning, by the way. I’ll be on call to go get them and spend some time, but I think I’ll bring them here on Thursday so they can meet you, if that’s okay?” he asks, trying to break the silence.

“Of course! I’d love to!” Harry answers enthusiastically, and Louis tries to smile back like a normal person would, instead of just staring like a creep.

“Niall asks to see pictures, and I second that!”

They spend around thirty minutes all hunched on Louis’ phone, as he shows them pictures of all his siblings, every single one of them, the younger twins covered in chocolate, Phoebe and Daisy in matching outfits, Fizzy at her graduation, and a very funny picture of Lottie looking feral with pins in her mouth that time she was trying to do his hair.

At some point, Louis catches sight of the time on his phone.

“My shift’s over. I should go home and clean up before the hurricane gets here.” He jokes.

“Of course!” Harry scrambles to get up, and then pauses, his gaze on the window.

“It’s pouring” he breathes out.

Louis looks over his shoulder. “It is.” He gets up. “Are you driving back to your place?” he asks, a little crease between his eyebrows.

Harry looks back to him. “Yeah, we are. You too?”

“Yeah. Be careful, you two, okay?”

“Of course.”

Louis turns to their blonde friend : “Bye Niall” he throws with a smile. He gets a toothy grin and a cute little wave as goodbye, and turns on his heels to go.

He feels a hand tighten on his wrist though, and when he turns around, Harry’s looking at him with a frown on his face and a very serious look in his eyes.

“Text me when you’re home?” and Louis blushes, because even though he raises his voice at the end, it doesn’t seem like he’s asking, and Louis’ a bit of a slut for that.

“Well, you’re driving too-“ he tries to argue (because he’s a little shit like that) but he gets interrupted because apparently, there’s a contest for the most stubborn person in the room, and Harry cuts, firmly : “I didn’t spend hours here, perform surgery on a child then drag two idiots with me through more work.”

And Louis blushes a deeper shade of red, because, in a weird, twisted way, that sounds like praise, and if he’s honest, he’d do anything to please that man. _Wait, what?_

He swallows hardly, looks at his feet and mutters “okay. I will.” He almost expects to get some more praise from this, and he’s disappointed that Harry just lets go of his arm.

“Good.” He finally mumbles, and Louis feels his insides go mushy. Fuck.

…

Forty-five minutes later, after changing out of his scrubs and driving home, Louis plops down on his couch and gets his phone out:

**_8:02 Home & safe_ **

**_Don’t trip over your own legs & die pls_ **

**8:04 Heyyyyyy**

**I’ll have you know, I have the grace of a ballerina!!!!**

**_8:04 Styles we all know you’re like Bambi on his first day_ **

**8:04 Whatever. In any case, I appreciate your concern.**

**_8:05 Always such the optimist_ **

**8:05 Someone has to be.**

**8:07 Anyways. What are you doing?**

**_8:10 lazing around_ **

**_gunna make something to eat and you?_ **

**8:10 We’re eating room service and watching TV. What are you eating?**

**_8:11 jeez, harry_ **

**_Pasta w/ sauce and you?_ **

**8:12Risotto. What do you mean jeez?**

**_8:12 dunno_ **

**_you’re even weirder by text you know that_ **

**8:12 Sorry.**

**_8:13 don’t be sorry dummy_ **

**_you’re cool weird_ **

**_do you do anything other than hang around st james tho?_ **

**8:14 I work too. Make great music and all that, you see. Someone has to**

**_8:14 Oh, I see_ **

**8:14 What do you see?**

**Louis?**

**…**

**Are you there?**

**_8:17 stop texting meeee_ **

**_listening to your stuff_ **

**_I need 2 focus_ **

**8:17 Nooooooo**

**Don’t tell me what you think of it please.**

**Especially not if you think it’s bad.**

**_8:20 i think it’s pretty cool_ **

**_so far_ **

**8:20Stooooop**

**That’s it.**

**I’m not talking to you anymore**

**I’d rather talk to Niall**

**_8:21 as you wish McCurls_ **

**8:25Louis**

**Louis**

**8:28 Louiiiiis**

**_8:29 what_ **

**8:29Did Niall tell you you’re pretty?**

**8:30 _uhhhh_**

**_no, he said you said I’m pretty_ **

**_8:37 Harry it’s ok_ **

**_am not offended_ **

**8:43 Sure?**

**_8:43 yes_ **

**_I would call myself handsome tho_ **

**8:45 Nah, you’re more cute than like rugged and all that.**

**_8:46 cute??_ **

**8:46 Yeah, like you’re small**

**** **And your eyes are colour-coordinated to your scrubs**

**_8:46 fuck you_ **

**_ok but that last one is rlly sweet_ **

**8:47 Fuck me?**

**_8:48 yes_ **

**_you’re way too tall_ **

**_but thank you_ **

**8:50 What for?**

**_8:50 the compliment dummy_ **

**8:51 But was it a compliment…?**

**_8:52 ok fuck you I’m going to sleep now_ **

**8:53Sweet dreams, little one.**

**_8:54 fuck you_ **

**_the album’s really nice btw_ **

**_i iked it a lot_ **

**_u should be more proud of it_ **

**8:54 Who’s complimenting who now?**

**_8:55 byeeeee_ **

**8:55 Thank you very much**

**_8:55 whatever_ **

**_I’m not speaking 2 you rn_ **

**8:56 No? Then why does my phone keep vibrating?**

**8:58 Louis?**

**9:08 It seems that I was played.**

**9:10 Goodnight, Lou. Sleep well <3**

**…**

Louis wakes up with his face plunged in his pillow, completely disoriented, and yet incredibly well rested. He picks up his phone and reads the last messages Harry had left.

Fuck.

Was that flirting? Probably. _I mean, it is a heart emoji after all._ Figuring there’s only one way to find out, he opens google and searches **Harry Styles gay?**

He scrolls through entire articles full of bullshit, and blurry pictures, and yet, nothing. Not enough to make sure anyways. Lost in a picture of Harry at the beach last summer, he starts to analyse their conversation once more.

He startles when his phone buzzes in his hand, and blushes deep red when the caller id flashes **Harry**.

It feels like he was caught doing something he shouldn’t have been doing. Should he?

He picks up and croaks out : “Hello?” _fuck his sleep voice, and damn all sexy dctors._

“Hi. Did I wake you?” a deep voice answers. He didn’t brace himself to hear it so close like this. Shit.

“Mhhh.”

“Louis” he hears a chuckle. “It’s eleven in the morning.”

“So what?” he whines in response. He’s entitled to sleep until the afternoon if he wants to, after all.

“So what should I wear?” he can hear a smile in the man’s voice, and it has potential to be adorable, but he’s too tired to appreciate it completely.

“What?”

“What should I wear?”

“What do you mean what should you wear?” Louis snaps. He’s confused and he doesn’t understand and he’s tired, okay?

“To go meet your sisters. Are we going all out or just a sweater?”

“Huh?” _What the fuck?_

“You said your sisters are arriving this morning. I assume you’re not on time to go get them, so I’m coming to drive you.”

Louis pulls his phone away from his ear, checks that it is, in fact, Harry calling, and then the time. 11:13. _Shit._

“Shit!”

“I know. I’m almost ready, but what should I wear?”

Louis’ in a panic, trying to untangle himself from his bedsheets, his phone still clutched in his hand.

“Fuck”

“Louis, calm down. Send your address, I’m coming right now. I’m wearing a sweater by the way.”

“Shit. Okay.”

“See you!” and then Harry hangs up.

Louis texts him his address quickly before jumping in the shower. He brushes his teeth while scrubbing his scalp with his other hand and almost trips and fall to his death while getting out. He dries off while jumping around trying to get into his clothes.

He’s frantically trying to dry his hair while getting socks on when his phone pings.

He steps out while still pulling his shoes on, his jumper in his hand and his hair dripping on the collar of his shirt. He pulls open the passenger door and slumps into the seat, ignoring just how expensive the leather looks.

“Hi” Harry bids him, all smiles and completely calm.

“Hi” he responds through his ragged breathing, still winded from his hectic morning.

They dive off quickly, after he tells harry his sisters are arriving through Paddington. (Harry vocally tells his car where they’re going and the itinerary pulls up on the screen, and Louis clings a little harder to his seatbelt because _woah._ )

“Did you know you’re shirt’s inside out?” Harry asks, still very calml, but with a smile on his lips that tells Louis maybe he’s enjoying himself playing the saviour to his damsels in distress, which, _shit. He is my saviour._

“Uh, no. I didn’t. Thank you so much, by the way. You’re saving me from being skinned alive by two very angry girls.” He says, while he’s pulling his arms through the sleeves awkwardly to turn his shirt around.

Harry chuckles but it dies in his throat when he looks towards him, and it’s mildly alarming to Louis. He finishes pulling on his clothing and secures his seatbelt before pulling down the mirror. His hair is a little crazy, which is fine, and he doesn’t see any mad pimples or dark circles, so nothing to explain the dying goose sound that came from his driver. Huh.

“There’s uh. There’s coffee and pastries right here if you’d like.” Harry tells him, gesturing to the cup-holder, where, indeed, there’s a cup and a paper bag.

“Oh my god” Louis groans, throwing his head back onto his seat. “You’re an actual _god_ , what the fuck?” and as he dives into the bag to get out a chocolate croissant and bite into it, he moans, and says with his mouthful:

“You’re a goddamn angel, what the actual fuck.”

And Harry just chuckles a bit, his eyes still trained on the road. Louis can see he’s blushing, though.

…

They get to the train station about fifteen minutes later, and Louis pulls up their ticket info on his phone. Once they’re on the platform, and only then, as they stand close next to one another, it hits Louis that his sisters have no idea what’s about to hit them.

“Harry…”

“Yes?”

“Um… I just want you to know that… you might get tackled by two very excited girls? I mean, they didn’t know you would come with me to get them.”

“Well if I hadn’t been there to drive you, nobody would’ve come to get them” Harry chuckles, and that makes Louis blush a little bit, ashamed that he forgot to wake up this morning. He looks down to his shoes, and Harry seems to notice his embarrassment as he tips forward and grabs Louis’ hand in his, before looking into his eyes and saying:

“You work harder than anyone else I’ve ever known, probably more than is healthy, so it’s absolutely normal that you get to sleep in sometimes, and driving you is the least I could’ve done.” He says firmly, and now Louis’ definitely blushing, because Harry’s holding his hand and _praising him, for God’s sake._

Louis blushes even harder at the look in Harry’s eyes, and makes a squeaky sound that he would’ve sworn didn’t come from him, when the train arrives, drowning everything in its noise.

They’re standing right in front of the coach his sisters are in, and once he spots them through the window, everything goes faster : he rushes forward to knock on the train window, smiling widely, and he sees his sisters smiling even bigger as they start rushing to the door. He pushes people aside and as he manages to get in front of it, they’re stepping out, and throwing themselves in his arms, the three of them laughing like maniacs. It’s only been a few months since he’s seen them, but so much has happened, and he’s missed them so much he could cry.

He holds them both to his heart and kiss their heads as they squeeze him half to death, the overwhelming smell of hair product getting in his nose : _home._

“I missed you so much” he mumbles in Lottie’s neck.

“We missed you too, big brother.” Fizz answers .

He gives them one last squeeze before letting go to get their luggage, and he can only imagine what they look like : red in the face, teary eyes, dishevelled hair from throwing themselves into the other’s arms. He only realizes he completely forgot Harry as he emerges from the crowd holding two heavy bags I one hand, holding his sister’s hand in the other. He raises himself on his tippy toes to look around, and once he spots him, he turns to his sisters with a smirk :

“I brought a surprise with me” he announces proudly.”

They both give him a quizzical look, but after he point behind him to a fond looking Harry, they both squeal so loud some pigeons fly away.

…

After another crying fest and finally going out of the train station and getting their bags and luggage in the trunk of Harry’s car (“you’re going to be here for _five days_ , Jesus Christ.”) they’re on their way back to Louis’ place.

“Thank you so much for coming to get us!” Fizzy yells excitedly. Louis winces.

“We’re in the car now, sweet, you can quiet down a little.” He never lost his “dad voice” after spending so much time with them as they were kids. Still, it seems to not have lost any of its effects as Fizzy looks down sheepishly and blushes a little.

“Yeah, god knows if it depended on Louis alone we would’ve waited the mandatory two hours at the station” Lottie says, not really reproachful, just teasing.

Harry gives him a glance and a smirk, his hands not leaving the steering wheel. _Hot,_ Louis thinks.

“That’s what I gathered. Not one for being on time, your brother.”

“Piss off!” Louis huffs, blushing too. Crazy the affect Harry can have on the Tomlinson family.

They keep up a bit of banter while on the road still, and Louis’ laughing loudly at the way Fizz just sassed the crap out of Harry (he taught her well) when his pager starts beeping crazily.

“For fuck’s sake” he mutters.

The car’s gone eerily silent. His sisters know the drill (that makes him feel profoundly guilty, all the time together he had to sacrifice for other people), and Harry seems to understand what’s going on immediately.

**Need you in the OR in 5 – Malik**

“Fuck” he says, out loud this time. It makes Harry flinch, so he follows up with a quiet “sorry” while he fishes his phone out of his pocket.

He dials one of Zayn’s interns immediately. Thankfully, she picks up within seconds.

“What do you have?” he doesn’t bother with greetings, and she doesn’t dwell over it.

“Trauma came in, a beat up kid, fourth and fifth ribs broken on his left side, busted valve, cracked skull, and a collapsed lung too.”

“fuck.” He thinks for a moment, analyses all this data in his head to determine what’s the most pressing problem at hand.

“Alright, tell Malik to perform a pleurodesis. Have a blood sample taken, take it to the lab, be ready to transfuse them. After that, we need a scan of their head and _only then_ you can let him take that kid to the OR. Do you understand me?” he asks firmly. He can’t let Zayn operate on them as long as he’s not there, and as long as they don’t know _exactly_ what’s going on.

He starts reaching in his pocket at the same time, and hands the keys to his apartment to a horrified Lottie in the back seat.

“Stop the car, I’ll take a taxi there, or whatever” he asks Harry, already out of his seatbelt and tugging on the door handle.

Harry widens his eyes at him.

“Are you crazy? I’m driving you there!” he says. Louis doesn’t have time to complain, he breathes out for a few seconds, his eyes closed, before opening them and saying a soft “thank you”.

Then he gets back to the matter at hand.

“Smith, did you hear me? Pleurodesis, blood sample, scan. Can you move and do your job?” he starts raising his voice.

There’s a few seconds of silence again , that are absolutely enraging to him. Then, a soft voice answers him.

“He’s already in the OR, sir.”

“Oh, for fuck’s sake!” Louis roars. He thumps his back of his skull on the headrest, and ignores the concerned looks he gets.

“Go faster” he tells Harry, while stripping out of his jumper. No time to get into his scrubs, he’ll just drench his arms in betadine and put on sterile over scrubs.

He puts his phone back to his ear.

“Blood pressure? Vfib?” he asks.

He tries to make himself an idea of what could be going on with the patient with the different pieces of information he can get.

After two minutes, he gathered everything he could get.

“Alright. And to we know the cause of trauma?” he asks.

“Most likely domestic abuse, sir.”

“Abuse?” he yells again. “And Malik’s in the OR with him already? Where the fuck are the parents?”

“Waiting room, doctor Tomlinson.”

“Then call the fucking police, for fuck’s sake! NOW!” he screams, before hanging up and putting his head in his hands.

He tries to take deep breaths to cool down, and he feels Fizzy’s hand on his back after a little while.

“We’re there” says Harry in a quivering voice. He clears his throat. “We’ll wait for you.”

“Not necessary” Louis answers as he gets out of the car. “You can go home if you’d like. Thanks.”

Before running off at full speed.

…

He’s in surgery for so long his feet hurt. He keeps going, always having something to do. He helps Zayn fix the little girl’s heart, he fixes broken bones in her arms, and stabilizes her ribs. The only break he gets is when they roll her out to get a scan for her head. Turns out he also has to perform a craniectomy.

They check one last time she’s in a stable state, and ready for a few weeks of healing before scrubing out.

He gets into a fight with Zayn : turns out he was sure to be able to do it on his own, which is the reason why he was paged so late. They make up easily, because they’re that close, and after Louis goes to the bathroom to pee (it’s been almost three hours, for god’s sake.) and splash some cold water on his face.

He doesn’t look his best for sure, but aside from “tired and hungry”, it’s not so bad. He doesn’t look completely dead on his feet yet.

When he gets out in the hall, he fills some paperwork against that girl’s parents, and the usual patient file they’ll need, before going down to a deserted cafeteria. He’s thinking a coffee, and going home for a nap. Or maybe a nap here?

Either way, he doesn’t get to ponder long, because as he walks in, he spots Harry and his sisters having a joyful meal, all laughing with big smiles on their faces. That only makes him smile too, albeit a little confusedly.

He squeezes next to Harry in their booth, as they all look to him with questioning glances.

“She’s alive, stable. Waking up in the ICU, her parents were arrested.” He reassures quickly, appreciating everyone’s relieved look. It makes him feel warm inside that they care for his patients almost as much as him.

Harry hands him a steaming coffee cup and a muffin, and Louis just watches him for a few seconds, wondering if he could kiss him just now, until Lottie clears her throat in front of them.

“Right. You stayed the whole time?” he asks, and Fizzy and Lottie both nod, mischievous smirks on their faces.

Louis narrows his eyes.

“What are you not telling me…?” he asks, suspicious, and once he understands he won’t get anything out of either of them, he turns to Harry, who tries to hide his face in his coffee cup.

Louis doesn’t relent, and keeps staring at him until Harry is a blushing mess staring at the table.

He turns back to his sisters.

“What did you terrors do to him?” he accuses.

“Nothing!” they say both at the same time.

He narrows his eyes some more.

“Harold, don’t let yourself be bullied by those two.” He exclaims, putting his hand on Harry’s shoulder, who just ducks his head and blushes some more.

“I’m not inviting you here anymore. You broke him!” he giggles to his sisters.

“That’s not fair!” Fizzy exclaims, while at the same time Lottie raises an eyebrow and goes “I got a job here.”

Harry chokes on his drink, while Louis yells:

“You WHAT?”

Lottie gives him a smug look (he taught her how to do that, what the hell?) and repeats “I got a job here. So I’m going to be around a lot more, now.”

“You got a job _where?”_ Louis asks, getting slightly angry because he’s so confused, and no one is explaining anything to him.

Both girls look to Harry, who’s still coughing, red as a tomato.

“What the hell, Lots?” Louis screeches, thumping Harry between his shoulder blades. “You alright?” he adds softly.

“I got a job on Harry’s team.” She finally says.

Silence. Louis stops moving.

He turns to Harry who -finally- meets his eye.

“Listen, I don’t want to go behind your back or anything, just don’t be mad-“

He doesn’t get the chance to finish his sentence because Louis’ hugging him fiercely: “thank you…”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> What do we think???  
> I know it's been ages since my last update I'm so sorry, I was struggling with my meds so I had to take a little break  
> I'm back tho!!!  
> We're gonna get more Louis at work pretty soon, and probably more texting...  
> Hope you all liked it, thank you for reading, and tune in later this week for another update!!!

**Author's Note:**

> So? Do you guys love it? Do you hate it?  
> Do you want to set me on fire?  
> I'd really like some feedback, so you can go crazy!! (please?)
> 
> On another note, good luck through this whole quarantine thingy, we're all in this together after all.  
> How do we feel about two updates a week?
> 
> Alright please comment, thank you so much for reading, see ya later!!  
> Much Love,  
> Oidai <3


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